


Measured Steps

by ChaoticBlades



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Established Relationship, M/M, Slow Burn, gem au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-16
Updated: 2016-08-23
Packaged: 2018-04-14 23:38:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 27,281
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4584561
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChaoticBlades/pseuds/ChaoticBlades
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><b>J<b></b></b>ewel-Based<br/><b>E<b></b></b>quilibratory<br/><b>N<b></b></b>eo-Organism<br/><b>O<b></b></b>f<br/><b>V<b></b></b>ariable<br/><b>A<b></b></b>utonomy</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Stumble

**Author's Note:**

> Since I haven't decided exactly how I wanna play certain things yet, I'm waiting to add tags as they become relevant. Rating may go up... or it may not. Choosing not to use archive warnings for now, since I'm not sure yet which ones will be relevant.

It wasn’t until Zack had gotten them to the mansion at Nibelheim that his head cleared enough to appreciate what had been done to them. He himself felt complete in a way he hadn’t since being promoted to SOLDIER 1st and Cloud….

Cloud, who wasn’t even SOLDIER at all, had imbedded in his forehead a polished green stone. It was a leafy-mint color with veins running through it. Unfortunately, because Zack hadn’t paid much attention to the Jewel catalogue –what point was there when the scientists wouldn’t let him choose his own Jewel?- he had no idea of the name of the rock.

Another thing he wasn’t sure of was how it was even possible for Cloud to bond with one. Even Zack didn’t have his yet, since it took three years to synthesize a Jewel that could bond with a human.

“No way. This can’t be happening,” he moaned, finally feeling the chunk of quartz at the base of his spine. He didn’t have a mirror available but he knew if he did, he’d see a crystal of iridescent pastels. It was a variety known as angel aura. Not what he would’ve picked for himself but he was glad that it was one of the more interesting options.

“Man, Cloud, you know what this means?” he asked his comatose friend, “My Jewel was only half done when we got the Nibelheim mission. We had to’ve been here at least a year!” But then there was the matter of Cloud’s latest accessory. “Scratch that, three. Maybe even longer.”

Cloud made no noise to acknowledge that he’d heard but Zack wouldn’t have expected him to. It was an obvious case of mako poisoning, and the stress caused by gaining a Jewel couldn’t have helped.

“Ahh, what to do, what to do!” If only Angeal were still around. But he was gone, with only his Chiastolite Jewel as a memento. If there was one lucky break Zack had gotten with this mess, it was that when the scientists confiscated it, they hadn’t moved it far. In fact, it had gotten a mako pod of its own. “I guess the first thing would be to get out of here before they catch on. But….”

Again he looked at Cloud. There was no way he could leave him behind. But short of popping into his head and playing rooster, there was even less way he had a chance of getting them to safety. Shinra didn’t play around when their precious Jewels were on the line. The fiasco with Genesis and Angeal was proof of that.

Thinking about it called to mind something he’d seen only once in person: the most powerful technique of the 1st Class SOLDIERs. Fusion.

Excitedly, he turned to Cloud. “I think I figured it out! Now what was it Angeal used to tell me about it…?”

* * *

 

_“Zack, it’s not as easy as dancing,” Angeal sighed, placing a hand on Zack’s shoulder to call back his wandering attention, “It’s… very hard to describe.” His hand crawled unconsciously to the Jewel hidden beneath his turtleneck. He did it a lot when he was deep in thought._

_“So just show me!”_

_He sighed again. “Even if I did, all you would learn is how myself and one of the other 1 st’s fuse. No two fusions are the same, so no two dances are the same.”_

_Zack groaned and tugged at his hair. “So just- I don’t know, can’t you just tell me how you do it?”_

_“Hm, if you’re that curious…”_

_At his mentor’s words, he perked up._

_“…when you make 1 st, I’ll be there three years to the day to show you how it’s done.”_

_“Ugh, Angeal!”_

* * *

 

Pouting, he muttered, “’Ugh, Angeal’ is right. Now what?”

For a while he paced, looking back at Cloud every now and then. He didn’t know much about fusion but he did know that it required active participation, which implied consciousness. Just about the only information Angeal had been willing to give was that there was no set dance like cadets liked to gossip about –instead it was about using the right dance for the right person, whatever that meant.

Zack stopped in his tracks and steeled himself. Then, feeling a little foolish, stumble-skipped his way over to the bed, flailing his arms in an imitation of something he’d seen at a nightclub (and succeeding only at looking like a broken helicopter). Once there, he picked up Cloud and spun his limp body into a dip.

Aside from the unpleasant sensation of two sets of mako-damp clothes being pressed together, nothing happened.

“I guess it was too much to hope for,” he sighed, turning the dip into a hug (though for whose benefit his frazzled mind couldn’t say), “Man, I should really get you out of those clothes. It can’t be helping your condition.”

A derisive snort.

At first he was excited that Cloud might not be as bad off as he’d thought, but then it hit him that the sound had come from behind him.

Instantly he was facing the door, buster sword held tremulously by his right arm, Cloud shuffled to the left.

His uneasiness at the weakened state his time as a lab rat had left him in only got worse when he saw his mystery visitor: Genesis, his Jewel-projected clothing looking even more washed-out than when he’d last seen him in Modeoheim. And though Zack couldn’t see his Jewel –Genesis preferred to hide his useless right socket with his bangs, except when circumstances required a more dramatic approach- he could guess that the Andesine shard was similarly pale.

“What are you doing here, Genesis?” He spoke calmly, willing to reason, but at a low pitch. Warning him what would happen if he tried to take advantage of their current circumstances.

Genesis laughed, briefly and with too much flare to be considered truly elegant. His movement further into the room wasn’t a step nor even a strut. It was a prowl.

It put Zack even _more_ on edge.

“Chrysoprase. The stone to speed healing, turn away negative energy, and bring the unconscious to light,” he noted, theatrically gesturing towards Cloud, “All of that, and he’s succumbed to mako poisoning. Ironic, isn’t it.” He hadn’t stopped moving towards them.

Zack tightened his grip on the sword. “That’s close enough.” When Genesis merely smirked and glided ever closer, he began backing up.

 _Can I fight him?_ he wondered, _If I was able to... take down Angeal, then it should at least be possible. But Cloud would get caught up in it._

That decided it for him. One moment he was cornered by the unstable SOLDIER, the next he was hurtling out the closest window, pausing only long enough to toss Cloud over his shoulder before sprinting off towards Mt. Nibel.

He could imagine Cloud’s voice taking on that if-you-weren’t-my-CO-I-would-be-scolding-you-right-now tone he sometimes had on the rare occasions they met outside of Shinra business.

Head Cloud looked at Zack and at the mountain and pointed out, _“You had to have Tifa guide you for a reason. Even the natives avoid going to the mountains if they can help it. What makes you think you have a chance?”_

 _Because if I_ don’t _go somewhere no one in their right mind would follow, I’ll end up with a lot of people on my tail,_ he answered. Head Cloud remained unimpressed. _Hey, you’re just my imagination. Don’t go getting ahead of yourself!_

Apparently his imagination had more sense than he did, because it made sure to remind him how stupid he was being every snowy step. It was hard to disagree. Especially after the first hour.

The second.

The third.

Zack never made the decision to get out of the cold. Cloud slipped in his grip, causing him to lose his balance and topple into a depression, which rolled him into the mouth of a cave. By that time their clothing had long since stiffened with ice crystals. Zack felt sick, miserable, and woozy, so he could only imagine how poorly off Cloud was.

“H-hey, buddy,” he said through chattering teeth, rolling the other onto his back, “Hang in there, ok-k-kay?” He muttered some more to himself on how they would be alright as he started dragging Cloud deeper in. There was a snowflake on the tip of his nose that wouldn’t melt. That couldn’t be good.

His vision changed slightly. It wasn’t until his nose touched the ground that it registered that he’d tripped.

It was his last thought before succumbing to it all.


	2. Bow

Waking up was a drawn-out process. At some point he realized that he was awake but was so pained he didn’t do anything about it. He had no idea how long it took –minutes? hours?- but eventually that passed enough for him to notice he was warm. Too warm. Boiling.

Shifting (and groaning as a result –what had he been _doing_ yesterday?), he found the source of the heat. He opened his mouth to tell the living furnace to get their own bed. Fortunately, he blinked blearily a couple times first, thereby seeing just who exactly he’d been going to growl at.

“Cloud!” yelped Zack, rolling onto his knees and shaking his shoulder, “Cloud, is everything okay?!”

“There’s no point in speaking to someone in his state.”

Zack froze. Then carefully turned around to face Genesis, who was lounging at one of the mansion’s tables. It was set for two.

Taking a moment to ground himself (which mostly involved picking at the bed sheets with his nails), Zack said, “Looks like you caught us. So what are you planning?”

Genesis paused as if considering, taking a sip of wine. Of course he would have wine. It was Genesis; even as a no-good deserter, even as his body fell apart around him, of course he was nothing less than perfectly poised. “Why don’t you join me and we can discuss it?”

 _I can think of so many reasons why this is a bad idea,_ he groaned internally, _Then again, Genesis_ did _take the time to save Cloud. That’s got to count for something, right?_ He could reason away his rescue as being on account of Angeal’s memory or something like that, but Cloud? Cloud was just an infantryman. No one that Genesis would have any interest in. Or maybe it was because Zack had taken interest? Either way, he didn’t have much choice.

Zack nodded in answer to the rhetorical question and rose as smoothly as he could. It was a relief to sit back down again in his place at the table even though he’d only had to take a few steps to get there. His muscles were even worse when he had to stand upright.

“So, you brought us back to the mansion…?” he prompted as he reached for a slice of rye bread.

The meal was, as he’d learned in the short time he’d been there, fairly typical of Nibelheim: bread, strongly-scented sausage, and a bowl of some kind of dumpling. He remembered Cloud squirming when they sat down to eat the meal provided by the inn. Zack had made extra sure to compliment the food. By both his and the innkeeper’s reaction, he suspected the rare travelers tended not to react so favorably.

“Not very bright of you to wander out into the cold in your condition,” Genesis said mockingly, knocking back Zack’s hand when it reached for some of the heavier food. He pointed at his plate and Zack saw that it already had a bowl of pea soup resting on it. “If I hadn’t saved you, you would have died for sure.”

“Normally I’d say thanks… but you didn’t save us out of the goodness of your heart, did you?” He spooned up some of the soup. If Genesis hadn’t been right there glaring at him, he would have immediately spit it back out. There had to be one Nibel dish he didn’t like. At least it wasn’t one that Cloud was awake to see him hate.

Instead of answering, Genesis quoted, “My friend, the fates are cruel/There are no dreams, no honor remains/The arrow has left the bow of the goddess.”

“More LOVELESS?”

He chuckled. “You say that as if it has no relevance to you, Zack.” The name was drawled, as if he was torn between ridicule and purring. “After the incident four years ago, I thought the gift of the goddess was lost to me forever. But then who should resurface but Angeal’s successor?”

“If you want something from me, why not come right out and say it?” grumbled Zack, irritated that four years later ( _four years_? It had been _that long?_ ) people still insisted on jerking him around instead of asking for his help.

Genesis tsked, but he still gave Zack his full attention. “I must say, it’s a relief that the infantryman is here. This will be much easier.” Before Zack could protest any part of the implied threat, he leaned forward and said, in a voice uncharacteristically free of dramatization, “I will help you save your pet if you will agree to fuse with me.”

“Huh?”

He could tell that the other was thought he sounded stupid but Zack felt his confusion was justified.

_Genesis wants to fuse with me? Why? Does he think I’m going to join his Take Down Shinra club now that I’ve got a grudge against them too? Is he planning something big? Will he kill Cloud if I don’t agree?_

He meant to ask any one of those things but what came out was, “I’m not Angeal.” Regretting it immediately, he hid his wince by picking up the bowl and swallowing the pea soup in one gulp, only to choke and cough when it burned his throat.

When he was done hacking up a lung, he looked up to see a look of undisguised horror on Genesis’ face. Zack wasn’t sure if it was for what he’d said, the soup, or the idea of fusing with him. Probably all three.

“Sorry, that came out wrong,” he sighed, scratching the back of his head awkwardly, “It’s just- I’m not Angeal Jr. I’m not going to follow you around and watch you hurt people like he did. And I’m definitely not letting you get away with keeping me in the dark either.”

The answering smile was bitter and frustrated and ashamed all at once; that so much genuine emotion could come from him –and in such a brief moment- did more to convince Zack that Genesis could be trusted than his promises or attempts at persuasion ever could.

It was for that reason he pressed no further, instead saying, “Anyway, we can worry about that after we fix up Cloud. Got any ideas?”

“Does that mean you accept my deal?”

He shrugged. “Right now all I want is to help my friend. If all you want is to fuse…” He shrugged again. “…well, why not, you know?” Burying the part of himself that still screamed that he was making a horrible mistake (because really, it wasn’t as if he enjoyed doubting people, especially if they were helping him), he continued, “So… when were you thinking of-“ He cut himself off when Genesis rose. “Okay. Right now. Great.”

“And here I thought the Puppy would be more eager.” Genesis, seeming to realize that Zack wasn’t up for any more physical exertion than was strictly necessary, moved the table and chairs back to make room for their dance.

Zack groaned and buried his face in his hands. “Did Angeal call me that to _everyone?_ ”

Genesis laughed.

“Hey, come on, you can’t just leave it like that! Hey! Genesis!”

“Correct me if I’m wrong,” Genesis said, though his tone denied such a possibility, “but this will be your first time fusing?”

“Yeah, it is,” he admitted, “At least, I think so. The stuff they did to me in the labs is pretty fuzzy but I think I would’ve remembered it.” Searching his memory one last time didn’t bring up anything new but it did give him the beginnings of a headache. “Uh, so what do I need to do? Angeal wanted to save teaching me stuff about it until I actually had my Jewel. But he… you know.”

“That explains your embarrassing display earlier,” Genesis said, though there was very little judgment in it. Mostly he just seemed sad.

Taking a chance, Zack said softly, “I miss him too.”

That Zack would empathize with him (or worse, _pity_ him) was like a key to the box where Genesis stored all of his true feelings. Unfortunately, the key snapped the lock in place, decisively ending the moment. His face returned to its usual expression of quiet scorn and he was worse than Zack’s old drill instructors when marshalling him into the proper degree of looseness required for dancing.

“Why are you so stiff?”

“That’s too loose!”

“I saw that!”

He quickly aborted the rude hand gesture, feeling ashamed at his lapse in civility. For all that Zack understood more-or-less where Genesis was coming from, there was no way they’d ever be friends. They were exactly the sort who couldn’t help getting on each other’s nerves. At times he found that his sympathy was strained despite knowing how hopeless the other’s situation was. Even so, Genesis was the only ally he and Cloud had.

 _But does he have to be so rough on me? I’m not exactly in top shape right now_ , he grumbled internally, giving up and letting the impatient man physically reach out and pose him as if he were a mannequin.

“Now then.” Genesis began pacing back and forth in front of him. “Tell me every last detail Angeal mentioned to you.”

“All he said was that every fusion is different. That there’s no set moves or whatever.”

He nodded, more out of satisfaction than acknowledgment of what had been said. “There are three steps to a successful fusion. Firstly, the SOLDIERs fusing must consciously consent to doing so. That’s why your attempt with that trooper was such a disaster,” he said, before smirking. “Well, most of the reason.”

Zack just rolled his eyes and motioned him on.

Taking his lack of reaction in stride, Genesis continued, “Secondly, you must feel the rhythm of your body –that is, your Jewel. Regardless of your past existence, from the moment the Jewel connects with your flesh, the natural flow of the Lifestream shifts its course to center around it.”

From the way he eyed Zack as he paused, he knew whatever he explained next would be something juicy. Probably highly classified. The-Science-Department-would-throw-a-fit-if-they-knew classified. He leaned in.

“I doubt you were awake for it, but in that moment, your physical body broke down and was made anew.” Pausing dramatically, he must’ve gotten the awe he wanted, because he suddenly became almost cheerful. “That is the secret to the power of a SOLDIER 1st Class: because our bodies are not real, we can reduce them to a flow of pure mako and reform as a singular entity. Furthermore, unless our true bodies, our Jewels, are destroyed-“ A vicious grin. “-we cannot die.”

The objection lodged itself in Zack’s throat, refusing to budge. “B-but-“

_But then why did Angeal act like he was dying?!_

The words wouldn’t come out, no matter how many times he tried. Eventually he got tired of making strangled noises and pulled the Chiastolite Jewel out of his pocket.

It was completely unmarred.

Genesis, who’d been impatiently demanding that he explain himself, was for once speechless when he caught sight of what rested in Zack’s palm. For the next minute or so the two made inarticulate squawks at each other.

It was Genesis who recovered first. “You absolute _fool!_ ”

“Hey! I didn’t know any of this!” he protested, “Besides, if Angeal isn’t dead, then how come he doesn’t have a body again yet? It’s been five years!”

The other paused, considering, and seemed to come to a realization. One that he refused to share, despite Zack’s wheedling. “Let us… finish what we have started here.” He sounded exhausted.

“…Genesis?”

“Dreams of the morrow hath the shattered soul/Pride is lost/Wings stripped away, the end is nigh.” The words were said with all the heaviness of a eulogy. Even the hand he reached towards Zack seemed to sink with their weight.

He placed Angeal’s Jewel next to Cloud and took it.

He was lead into a formal dance. Though he didn’t know the steps, his training, enhanced reflexes, and Genesis’ expertise helped him pick it up quickly. After awhile he stopped noticing his weariness.

And so they danced.

And they danced.

And danced.

Danced.

As he briefly spun away from his partner, Zack noticed that the light coming in through the window had grown red, reflecting off Genesis and making him look like a living flame. He had just enough time to dully note how long they must have danced before he was swept back up into the brisk steps. It was… calming. While they hadn’t succeeded in fusion yet ( _hadn’t succeeded, hadn’t tried_ ), the physicality of it pushed back the worries about Angeal and Cloud and Shinra and everything else that had gone so terribly wrong in the past few years.

Step left.

Step right.

Twist and dip.

Shoulders meeting.

Backs meeting.

Somewhere along the way, Zack became confident enough to get bored with the basic movements, adding more energy and swaying his hips in a way that felt natural. The red light of the sunset reached Genesis’ Jewel through his bangs, reflecting in such a way that the Jewel appeared to glow. In that moment, everything felt so _right_ and _good_ that Zack grinned and spun.

At the end of the spin, Genesis looped an arm around his lower back and pulled them in tight, chest to chest. The glow got brighter and then-

Sashaying over to the bedside table, Fire Opal blew himself a cheeky kiss at his reflection in the mirror he found there. A murmur in the back of his mind agreed and praised him.

The eye that he got from Andesine sat just above the base of his nose, right underneath a single unibrow and the Jewel on his forehead. He had messy black hair, longer in the front, and skin with only a touch of Angel Aura’s Gongagan swarthiness. Noticing with approval his contoured cheeks and the artful bump on the bridge of his nose, he cast his gaze downwards to see the rest of the goods.

“We’ll have to do this again when you wake up, Chrysoprase, Chiastolite,” he purred, running a hand down his toned chest. Then he giggled ecstatically and pranced off to find a bigger mirror.

Or would have, had he not run directly into one of the twisted beings mapped with Andesine’s genetic code. It attacked with a ferocity that instantly soured Fire Opal’s mood.

“Oh, that’s right,” he thought aloud with disgust, cutting the creature down with a single, magic-infused slash of his buster-mounted broadsword, “Andesine was following you lot to find the source of your odd behavior these past years.”

Three more entered the hallway. Others were behind them, a mix of Andesine copies, Chiastolite copies, and the mysterious third type that had first appeared four years ago, identifiable only as a cousin to the other two.

Fire Opal was filled with pure, unadulterated rage. Wisps of smoke rose like wraiths from where he was burning a hole in the carpet.

“You… insignificant… refuse…,” he spat, giving in to the overwhelming desire to carve every unworthy inch of skin from their miserable, undeserving flesh, “ _How dare you think to put yourselves at my level?!_ ”

The piles of wasted meat were left to smolder on the floor –no longer requiring his attention, Fire Opal dismissed them from his mind to focus on the only other beings of consequence in the area.

The copies clawing at the two of them were incinerated without a second thought.

“Oh, Chrysoprase, it got blood on you,” cooed Fire Opal, wiping it away with a sheet.

From outside the room, the pounding of feet announced more of the cretins.

His temper flaring once more, he gathered his fellow Jewels into his arms, telling them in a sing-song voice, “They’re not allowed to touch you. They don’t even deserve to look upon you.”

Chiastolite would have been proud of the skill with which he dispatched them as he made his way out of the mansion. Chrysoprase would have been awed, he could tell. Chrysoprase should have been awake for it so that he could be properly inspired to take in hand his potential and make it his own. Fire Opal so very much wished to do that for him; embolden the younger Jewel beyond his unnecessary reservations.

Thinking about it brightened his mood as surely as a true interaction with his friend would have and so he knocked down the front door with a celebratory fire spell.

However, when he emerged from the acrid smoke, his eyes narrowed into a furious glare.

Turks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, uh, yeah, Fire Opal isn't going to be their fusion of choice after this. For... obvious reasons. If anyone's interested, I've got a couple basic sketches of him (sword not to scale):
> 
> https://41.media.tumblr.com/7502ddd5b3520cd9cf1553f0524e033f/tumblr_ntkgo5Ware1rujaqqo1_540.jpg
> 
> Zack has been portrayed with a couple different eye colors over the years so I decided to go for my favorite for him: purple (which used to be really popular in fic). It helps vary up the designs since aside from Sephiroth, everyone else has some shade of blue.
> 
> Anyways, I'm gonna try for weekly updates, though that might not be doable given that I'm starting my senior year of college in another week. Also: I added an archive warning. If things have gotten this brutal in a handful of paragraphs at the end of chapter 2, that's a pretty good sign that it's just going to become more and more appropriate.
> 
> The site where I looked up gems and their meanings:
> 
> https://crystal-cure.com/gemstone-meanings.html


	3. Alegrias

Only Cissnei and Tseng stood within Fire Opal’s visual range, though that meant little when Turks were involved; indeed, he could hear shifting all around him. They thought to hide from him? Stretching out an arm, he activated a mastered fire materia, which, augmented by his own powers, left a crater mere feet away from the nearest hidden enemies.

“That will be your one and only warning, Turks,” he snapped, letting the nearby grasses wilt from his heat, “I don’t have time for the likes of you.”

Already appropriately tense, Tseng’s eyes visibly widened as he considered the implications of Fire Opal’s presence.

“That’s right, Tseng _,_ ” he purred with vicious satisfaction, “Who could I possibly be? I’m clearly a fusion but I’m not Fluorite, Serpentine, Tiger’s Eye, or Agate. Come on, put it together. I know you can.”

Cissnei gasped at the grin he sent their way –undoubtedly familiar but for its mocking edge.

“Zack.” Tseng’s voice was clipped, full of subtle anger.

Sketching a grand bow, Fire Opal gestured towards himself with his thumb, his smile becoming more genuine at being acknowledged. “Got it in one! Angel Aura sends his regrets that he can’t be happy to see you again.” He pretended to reconsider. “Well, unless you want to let us continue on our way….”

“Zack, _you’re_ the source of the new copies?” Cissnei asked softly, waving off Tseng’s wordless objection to the information she was sharing.

If she hadn’t been one of Angel Aura’s friends, he would have incinerated her on the spot for that most insulting comparison. As it was, he scowled and replied, “You think those hideous weaklings came from _me?_ ” He swept all of his hands down his body to call attention to the foolishness of her assumption, ignoring Tseng’s frustrated groan in the background. “I don’t know anything about them beyond their irritating insistence upon opposing me!” He made sure to meet her eyes and smile as he sneered, “Wouldn’t that make it more likely they came from you?”

It was Tseng’s turn to interrupt, apparently, as he moved forward past Cissnei’s position. “Genesis, Zack. You need to de-fuse right now. Fire Opal is even less stable than Tiger’s Eye, and you know how destruction he gets.”

Fire Opal’s temper flared and with it his surroundings. _How dare these wretches give_ me _orders!_

The hidden Turks finally acted, using blizzard materia to protect the mansion from the rampant flames. Cissnei and Tseng weren’t so lucky –the former tumbled away with terrible burns across her face and legs, while the latter had to quickly rip away his suit to avoid a similar fate. But Fire Opal couldn’t savor the victory; deep inside him, Angel Aura screamed and tore at the bond between him and Andesine, the conflict making him grip his head and cry out in pain. Only one rational thought made it past his suffering: the two Jewels in his care had to be taken to safety at any and all cost.

And so he ran –or rather, careened- out of the mansion grounds and into Nibelheim, setting it ablaze as he went. Fire Opal had just reached the gate marking the village’s entrance when the fusion frayed apart completely.

The force of it sent Genesis flying out of the village and down an incline that was directly outside it. Managing to halt his wild roll by flipping onto his feet, he surveyed the area to recollect himself after the violent de-fusion.

“Less stable than Tiger’s Eye… yes, that statement is accurate enough,” he mused.

 _Still_ , he thought, observing the new life in his skin and projected clothing, _my goal was achieved. For now at least._

He stooped to collect the blond trooper and Angeal’s Jewel from where they’d fallen but a few yards away. There was no sign of Fair but the same could not be said of the more worrisome of Shinra’s dogs.

Sighing at the uselessness of the other SOLDIER, he slid the Chiastolite Jewel into one of the pockets of the trooper’s uniform, then lifted him in the manner associated with brides.

As he carried the boy to safety, Genesis allowed himself a smirk at the comparison. Though the trooper indeed played the role of the bride, it was not the threshold of a new home he was being carried over but the ashes of his old one. He was aware that most would call the observation trite, but such people had no eye for the subtle grace of a well-dissected cliché.

Genesis flitted past one copse after another, rejecting them all as unsuitable for his purpose. Finally his gaze fell upon a dead pine tree with half-exposed roots clawing unsuccessfully for their earthy haven. It was collapsed on top of a jagged boulder, the jutting rock and thick lower limbs forming a cave of sorts; a cave, he noted, pleased, that was just large enough to hide his unwanted passenger with nary a limb nor single strand of hair sticking out to alert the enemy to his location. His safety thus secured –and with it Fair’s cooperation- Genesis let his wing burst forth onto his back and flew to find the wayward puppy, a single raven feather kissing the ground in his wake.

* * *

 

Zack fell to his knees behind a log, trying to keep his panting quiet enough to avoid detection. It seemed to work because the Turks moved on. He groaned and rolled so that his back was against the log.

Cloud was missing. Angeal’s Jewel was missing. Genesis was missing.

He’d looked everywhere for all three but between the lack of light, his own exhaustion, and the Turks (who were way too persistent for his liking), there was nothing he could do. He could’ve cried, he was so frustrated.

“Angeal, what would you have done?” he whispered urgently, curling up into fetal position. He only stayed that way for a moment. A flapping sound was headed his way.

He barely managed to stand and brush away his half-formed tears before Genesis settled on the ground in front of him.

“Genesis, have you seen Cloud and Angeal? I’ve searched and searched but-“ Genesis’ lips were quirked in a way that either meant their friends were safe or that all four of them were in deep, deep trouble. “Uh, so you found them?” Zack peeked at his back to see if they were fastened on like a baby. Nothing.

“I hid them. They’ll be safe enough as we talk,” Genesis said, smoothly ignoring Zack’s shift in mood at his assertion, “We may need to rework our agreement somewhat. Fire Opal was-“

“You left them alone _with Turks around?!_ ” he screeched as he grabbed Genesis by his coat’s collar. Wasn’t Genesis supposed to be the clever one? “We can talk later! Where did you leave them?!” When he wasn’t answered right away, he tried to bound off to find them, only to be jerked back by his sword harness.

Genesis looked as if he had something to say but instead muttered, “I’m a cat person,” irritably under his breath. Then, single wing struggling to carry two muscular SOLDIERS, flew them straight up into the air. They made a beeline for the area where the hills at Mt. Nibel’s base eased into flatter terrain.

After an ungainly near-crash, Genesis smoothed his ruffled feathers (and not just the literal ones), snapping, “See? They are right there.” He pointed to a corner of Cloud’s scarf that was sticking out slightly between a tree and a rock.

And paused.

Making a noise that sounded dangerously close to a curse, he grabbed one of the branches and, using his enhanced strength, pulled the tree upright.

With its support shifted, the scarf tumbled to the ground.

The Zack of a few years past would’ve punched Genesis without a second a thought. Or even a first one. But Genesis was even more off-kilter than he was. He had no choice but to calm himself like Angeal would and evaluate the situation. Find a solution.

“Ugh,” he whined, violently ruffling his hair, “I bet that if the Turks got them, they’re halfway to Midgar by now! It’s going to be a lot harder to save them if we have to go through Shinra.”

 _Besides, as much as I want to see Aerith, she doesn’t need this kind of trouble. There’s so much weird stuff going on right now even Genesis can’t keep track of it all, and he wasn’t asleep for four years!_ He almost asked for the details he wasn’t able to glean from their time as Fire Opal. _No,_ he decided, _not the time. Focus, Zack._

Genesis was regarding him with an artfully arched eyebrow. “Are you trying to come up with a plan?”

“You don’t have to say it like it’s a miracle.”

“Isn’t it?”

Zack rolled his eyes and ignored the needling. The more time he spent with Genesis, the more he was getting the impression that that was the best way to deal with him. “Well, it’s hard to plan if we don’t even know what’s going on. It makes more sense to get to Midgar and figure things out from there.”

Genesis nodded, though he wasn’t please about it. “You make a good point.” He got a look on his face as if he was constipated.

“Uh, you okay there?”

“…I was attempting to call one of my more monstrous copies to decrease our travel time,” he said with a frown.

“And?”

He brushed off Zack’s concern with an annoyed, “Later. There’s no time to discuss it right now.” He met Zack’s eyes and gave a very serious nod. “I promise I won’t keep you in the dark longer than is necessary.”

“I’m holding you to that,” Zack warned as they both turned towards Midgar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Late update and short chapter. Sorry about that, I'm officially in my senior year of college and the ride to the school was long and hellish. I'm gonna try to stick to the Sunday updates so if I don't complete chapter 4 in time for this weekend, I'll just wait a week before posting it so I can get back on schedule. 
> 
> I forgot to do this last chapter so: thank you to everyone who's read, reviewed, and left kudos! It really helps keep my drive up to know that so many people are enjoying the story. The next chapter should be a lot more fulfilling AND will feature a new fusion.
> 
> So every combination of Angeal, Genesis, and Sephiroth has been named. Can anyone guess which is which?


	4. Pas de Bourrée

Zack swore through a mouthful of water as he was yet again dragged under the surface by a sea-dwelling monster.

 _Any minute now, Genesis,_ he grumbled internally, scrabbling at the slippery tendrils tugging at his ankle. The buster sword was too large and heavy for him to use effectively in the water (not that it would have the cutting power necessary to free him, given the waterproof cloth it was wrapped in), so they had to rely on Genesis’ broadsword. Zack had yet to learn how to manifest a weapon out of his Jewel but unlike Genesis, he wasn’t convinced that it would’ve made any difference. After all, Angeal’s Jewel weapon had matched the sword Zack now carried, so he figured there was a chance the same thing would happen to him. Unlike his mentor though, he didn’t think he cared to lug around a wear-able, tear-able, rust-able sword when he could just as easily create the same thing out of thin air, honor or no honor.

In a puff of red, he was released. Zack gratefully gasped in air, barely even minding that Genesis was impatiently dragging him along all the while.

One miserable week of jogging across all kinds of terrain, Genesis gliding them short distances whenever he was able. One week of hiding from Shinra troops and rampaging copies alike. One week to cross a continent, and that was the easy part. Because while it had been Genesis’ idea to stow away on a ship leaving Costa del Sol, it was Zack’s to shorten the trip by jumping off halfway to Junon. It was difficult but certainly doable for a SOLDIER to swim that distance.

At least it was for a well-rested SOLDIER in peak condition. Which, unfortunately, was something that was in short supply for them at the moment.

Genesis flew them as far as he could (namely not very far at all) before they were forced to swim. Now, hours into the experience, both had run out of the energy needed to defend themselves with magic, Genesis’ mood was as bad as the smell wafting off of the wing he was too tired to put away, and Zack never again wanted to swim or roll in snow or any other action that would result in wet, cold clothes. But.

The shoreline was visible. They had made it.

Three more encounters with monsters later, Zack stumbled out of the sea and let himself fall face-first into a sand dune, a sour faced Genesis sitting down huffily beside him to wring out his clothes. Zack watched out of the corner of his eye as he scraped seaweed off his coat, then turned to do the same for Zack.

 When he noticed him staring, Genesis said, “Don’t get the wrong idea. It affects my image if I’m seen travelling with someone so sloppy looking.”

“Whatever, man.” As long as Genesis was busy preening, it meant Zack didn’t have to move. And not moving had currently overtaken ‘defend your honor as SOLDIER’ as his dearest dream.

“I suppose you won’t be any help setting up camp?”

“Give me a break. I’m a SOLDIER, not a robot,” he snorted, barely finding the energy to flick a fingernail’s worth of sand at Genesis, “I haven’t had a chance to really rest since escaping that lab. I’m all out of steam.”

“Will you at least move to that cave over there where we’ll be better hidden?”

“Nope.”

“Brat.”

“Seaweed wing.”

From the sound that came out of Genesis’ throat, Zack guessed that his taunt had been right on the money.

* * *

 

In the end, Genesis set up a small fire in the cave, then returned to drag Zack there by his boot. By the time their dinner was done cooking (some kind of waterfowl that Genesis chopped into squares with a small, hidden blade and then skewered), Zack had managed to at least sit up. His entire body was angry at him for having done so. He could tell that the last leg of their trip to Midgar would be hell on _his_ legs. And the rest of his body.

Taking a bite, he grimaced and said, “Okay, from now on I’m handling cooking. I don’t care if I’m unconscious –wake me up.”

“How uncharacteristically uncharitable of you.” Though he said that, Genesis seemed even more repulsed by the end result than he was.

“Sorry, I was kind of out of it when you were cooking.” Shrugging apologetically, Zack took a closer look at the meat. “I think the temperature was uneven?”

“You insulted my cooking when you don’t even know yourself?”

Another shrug. “Back home everyone helped out with cooking. It’s not like any of us were trained or anything, we just got a feel for the best way of doing things.” The food, while unpleasant, wasn’t inedible, so he continued eating. “I could show you if you want.”

Genesis wasn’t amused. “ _You_ want to teach _me_?” His attitude wavered when he took another bite but he wasn’t yet ready to give up on pride.

“Why not? You still need me to fuse with you, right?” Zack had gotten that impression from the way Genesis panicked when the fusion began to fail. It had been enough to spur him into doing his best to keep Fire Opal together, even as he himself desperately wanted to split to spare his friends from the fusion’s temper. “Once we free Cloud and Angeal, we’ll be right back on the road again; doing anything else would be too risky. Might as well have something to do.”

“You….” After an incredulous pause, Genesis laughed. Not some showy, affected chuckle either –an honest-to-goodness laugh. However, the moment ended almost as soon as it had begun. “You’re correct that I need to fuse but I’m afraid Fire Opal isn’t the best option.”

He thought about it. “Right, Tseng mentioned that he was unstable….”

“Yes. Should fortune smile upon us, we’ll take back what Shinra stole long before it becomes necessary for me to fuse again.”

“’Necessary’?”

“Yes, I-“ Genesis stopped and mouthed a few disjointed syllables as he tried to come up with the proper wording. “Now isn’t a good time to get into the details but I will say this: fusion temporarily reverses the degradation of my cells. It is the closest I can come to the true gift of the goddess.”

Zack’s mouth dried. “Is that why-,” he croaked. He swallowed to get his throat working again. “Is that Angeal left with you? To save you?”

The questions didn’t seem to strike a nerve but something flickered across Genesis’ face that indicated the conversation was over. “You’re talking quite a bit, considering how much you’ve been complaining about fatigue. Go to sleep –I’ll keep watch.”

He almost argued but he couldn’t deny it was the best course of action at that point. “Got to keep my strength up. Big day tomorrow,” he conceded before letting himself fall over and fall asleep.

* * *

 

He didn’t feel much better the next day –in fact, muscles he forgot he had were sore from all the swimming- but the thought of leaving his friends with Shinra for even a minute longer had him on his feet and doing squats to wake up. They ate breakfast and then they were on the road.

A couple hours and a fortuitous encounter with chocobos later, they were slipping into Midgar through a hole in the security. Naturally, no matter how alert Shinra was, they always neglected the slums. They only encountered a single, poorly manned patrol and, even though they barely managed to slip behind a tent in time to hide, the patrol kept walking as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

When they were out of earshot, Genesis made a ‘tch’ noise. Noticing Zack tilting his head, he explained, “Even for grunts that was incompetent, to say nothing of how easily we arrived.”

“Have a plan?” he asked. He kept his voice low but people were starting to notice them. Not good. Zack had been to the slums often enough visiting Aerith to know the importance of not standing out (even if he never quite accomplished it).

Genesis grimaced and subtly adjusted his coat. “I’m going to scout ahead, see if this is all a trap set for us.” He began to turn but paused to look sternly at Zack from out of the corner of his eye. “You stay here. No chasing after rats while I’m gone.” And then he slipped away.

Letting out a whoosh of air, Zack grumbled, “Yeah, yeah, yeah. When you wake up, Angeal, we’re going to have to talk about this ‘puppy’ business.”

Left alone, he no longer had anything to distract him from the one thing he knew would ruin their chances of breaking into Shinra undetected. At first, he started moving around because that’s what you did in the slums –staying stationary was just asking to join the grapevine or get robbed, neither of which they needed. But he kept catching himself straying closer and closer to the church.

 _I can’t do this! Not when Cloud and Angeal need me!_ But he couldn’t help but worry about Aerith too –Aerith, who he’d left alone for four years. _Is she going to be okay, what with Shinra’s crackdown?_

He tried to think about other things, like their rescue mission and what would come afterward, but when he stopped concentrating on Aerith, his feet started taking him to her on their own. And when he let himself think about her, all he wanted was to barge through those doors and apologize for making her wait so long.

He finally made up his mind when people started noticing that he was hovering in the same area and Genesis still hadn’t come back.

“Dammit,” he whispered, turning decisively and jogging towards the church. _All I have to do is peek through the window and make sure she’s okay. That’s all I’ll do._

It was all he intended to do. But when the church came into sight it hit him all over again that the visit would only hurt him and his friends and Aerith. It wasn’t as if he’d made a secret of his visits –they had to know he would come visit her.

Biting his lip, Zack made the only decision he could: he forced himself to turn around, eyes clenched shut in frustration. That was when he heard soft, familiar footsteps in front of him.

Sighing, he opened his eyes and gave a small, tired wave. “Hey, Cissnei. Sorry about before. Fire Opal was a bit more than both of us were expecting, I think.”

Looking at her through his own eyes, she hadn’t changed much in four years. The most striking difference, in fact, came from their most recent encounter in Nibelheim. Shinra’s doctor’s had done a good job patching up her burns but his enhanced senses could still make out the silver webbing of scars. They covered most of her face, crawled down her neck, and disappeared under her suit. He was willing to bet that the worst of them could be seen by normal humans too.

Cissnei accepted the greeting and apology with a nod. “It’s fine. Tseng should’ve known better than to provoke him.”

“It’s not fine!” he protested, keeping his voice down as best as he could, “I should’ve-“

“Done what exactly?” Her tone hadn’t changed at all –no accusation, only the usual clipped friendliness her job demanded she limit herself to. “Fusions involving Genesis are notoriously unstable. It was your first time, right?” She waited for confirmation. “Given those circumstances, you did as well as could be expected.”

“If you say so.” He ran a hand through his hair. “So now what? Going to turn me in?”

“Shinra already knows you’re here. They’ve known since before you entered Midgar. I’m just the one who got to you first.” She gave him a chiding look. “You shouldn’t have come here. To this place or to Midgar. We could’ve let you get away if you hadn’t insisted on coming to us.” Her shuriken was in her hands almost faster than he could see it.

“Quite the troublesome stray, isn’t he?”

Zack knew that if he turned around, he’d see Genesis swaggering out of the shadows in the perfect way to keep his face hidden until the last minute. Instead he said, “Would you quit it with the dog jokes?”

Genesis came to rest standing beside him. “Agreed. That would be for the best, given that you couldn’t even follow so simple a command as ‘stay’.”

He almost argued back but Genesis had a point. Instead he merely sighed and let his hand rest suggestively on the buster sword’s hilt. “Cissnei, please, just walk away. I don’t want to fight you or Tseng or anyone else. We’re just here for our friends.” Beside him, Genesis had the Rapier drawn, ready to shift from idleness to a fighting stance at a moment’s notice. Zack involuntarily gripped his own sword tighter, tense, and shifted forward desperately. “Cissnei, please!”

All three were poised to attack. The moment stretched on and on, silent except for Zack’s quickened breath. Cissnei watched Genesis, the greater threat. Genesis watched Zack, the one who would rather talk the situation out than fight. Zack watched both, knowing that if one so much as blinked at the wrong time, the other would immediately move in for the kill. They both were efficient like that –a kind of cruel efficiency he’d happily never had.

His eyes flicked between them.

The fumes of stale and rotting garbage clogged the air, made it hard to think straight.

Cissnei stood in inhumanly perfect stillness.

Some kind of muck dripped from the hem of Genesis’ coat.

Every one of his muscles felt like they were being gripped and squeezed by talons.

And then, miraculously, Cissnei’s grip loosened slightly. Slowly, very slowly, she relaxed, saying, “Zack, there’s something-“

_BANG!_

The buster sword was immediately in his hands and deflecting the bullet. As the Shinra troops charged forward to surround them, Zack met Cissnei’s gaze and saw the resignation there.

* * *

 

“E prs be stablizng.”

“Dctr, cn ou cm vr here? S dscrpnc n r findngs.”

“Nd thnk t ws ought e could nvr wake p!”

“Bliev s n cs may dvnc medcl ndg eights we nvr drmed pssble! Ou're tru mazng, Specimen C.”

A powerful jolt.

Doctors.

Infirmary?

Shinra.

Restrained.

_Restrained._

Yelling.

“Hold him down, _hold him down!_ ”

* * *

 

He woke up. He was dizzy. Nauseated. Confused by half-memories of a disaster.

It was the smell of blood that finally got him to move. He stumbled to his feet, taking in the sight of corpses strewn everywhere.

_Just like Nibelheim._

_No._

_Don’t think. Don’t thinkdon’tthinkdon’tthink._

Heaving did nothing –there was nothing that could come up. He saw his hands and went into another fit of dry heaving and shaking.

“What,” he tried to say. It came out raspy.

 _What happened,_ he panicked internally, _Sephiroth- and then-_ It hurt to think about what happened after so he stopped. The only recent thing he could remember was a series of disjointed sounds. Talking, he realized. All at once? Spread out? Thinking about time hurt too.

He noticed himself falling a moment after his face hit the hospital sheets. He stared dully at the purple splotches on his wrists. Bruises.

_Right. I was… tied down?_

Cuffed down, he discovered when he could find it in him to move. The leather was torn through at the clasp.

_Right. They were… trying to…._

Something in him didn’t want to think about it anymore. So he didn’t.

Instead he struggled to sit upright, then to stand. Then to look. Then to figure out what was going on.

First the bodies. There were five. A doctor and assistants. Shinra. At first he didn’t know why he was so sure but he soon realized it was because of the walls. He was in Midgar. He could just tell.

“-believe me, the Professor will want to see-“

He startled so hard at the sudden voices that he toppled over. _The bodies!_ his mind screamed, _I’ll get caught!_ He did the only thing he could think of and rolled under the bed. Just in time.

The doors slammed open and what followed was flurry of loud activity and even louder shouting. Curling into a ball, he covered his ears and whimpered. The sound was lost in the other noise.

“-doctor is-“

“Nevermind the doctor! The sample, where’s the sample?!”

“It couldn’t’ve gotten far!”

There was a smack as if someone had been hit. “Idiot! The specimen is in a comatose state, strange readings or not. If it’s not here, it’s because someone took it away.”

“ _I’m_ the idiot? The Turks would’ve reported it if the deserters made it into the building, and no one else would come for it!”

“AVALANCHE might.”

Silence.

“AVALANCHE isn’t a problem.” The protest was shaky.

“What does it matter who took it? It’s gone and it needs to be retrieved. That’s all there is to it.”

“She’s right. I’ll report this in –the rest of you split up between every possible path to Floor 68. It’s one thing to let our little thief take that failure –if they get Hewley….”

Just like that their footsteps started up again.

A snort. “If they get Hewley, Fair and Rhapsodos slaughter them to get him back.”

“As if _Zack Fair_ has it in him to slaughter anyone.”

And then they all were gone.

 _Zack Fair._ The name repeated in his mind. Images came to mind of a face surrounded by white.

“Zack Fair,” he said to himself, “Zack Fair… is a… country boy…?” It seemed right. “Zack Fair is a country boy.” Saying it again gave him a warm feeling.

 _Does that mean Zack is my… friend?_ he wondered, _Yeah… yeah. And he’s here to save me and… ‘Hewley’?_ If that was the case, he knew exactly what needed to be done. _Floor 68… I’ll meet Zack if I go…._

Crawling out from under the bed, he stood up and fumbled for the doorknob.

“Hey, what are you-!”

A guard. He killed them as easily and thoughtlessly as he had the doctor and assistants. The sight of the blood made him reel but he recovered quickly. He had enough presence of mind to steal their rifle.

Walking cleared his head a little. Enough so that after a few encounters with troopers (only a couple of whom recognized him as one of the subjects to apprehend) he learned how to blend in well enough that no one gave him a second glance. It helped that everyone he met was disoriented from the alleged intruder.

Along the way he picked up a helmet to hide his identity and block out some of the noise. He didn’t find it in time to avoid a migraine from the constant blaring of the alarms. His ears hurt, his head hurt, his whole body felt like it wasn’t his. Each step felt heavy and airy at once. Like expecting another step at the end of a stair when there wasn’t one.

He kept going.

Someone shouted for his identification number but was immediately distracted by those around him calling out their own. At times he was alone in a hallway. At times there were so many people he almost passed out from the sensations coming at him from all directions.

He kept going.

Someone realized he shouldn’t be there. They yelled and then stopped yelling. His hands dripped. The alarm sounded. The walls swayed. He bumped into a doorway and realized his eyes had shut at some point.

He kept going.

“Look! It’s Specimen C! It’s awake and walking and _I told you so-_ “

He was on the 68th floor.

“Zack?” he croaked.

The people buzzed. It was distracting. Annoying. It hurt.

“Zack?” Louder.

 _Zack… is here for me… and Hewley._ He needed Hewley. Zack would only come if he found Hewley.

“Hewley? Hewley?!”

“Why is it calling for Hewley? What’s going on? I thought it was given S cells!”

“Shut up! That doesn’t matter right now!”

“Hewley!” His voice cracked.

Human claws dug into his arms and sides. They were attacking. They were attacking and he needed to get away, _he needed to get away-!_

_CRACK!_

The rest gasped and screamed and ran away and it was so loud and it _hurt._

“Hewley,” he sobbed as he clutched his head. It hurt so much.

And then he heard the whisper. It was faint. A murmur. A sleepy murmur. He followed it eagerly to a pod. Inside was a round, brown rock marked with a black cross.

Footsteps. “What are you doing?!”

He ignored them and the pain his arm was in. Pulling the stone out of the hole in the pod, he let his head droop down and rest on it. His forehead clinked against it. “Hewley, Hewley, Hewley, Hewley, Hewley, Hewley….” Red dripped down into the green flooding from the pod.

_Splashsplashsplashsplash._

The footsteps were closer.

_Click._

_Shing._

He could feel the blade approaching his back. He was more interested in the glow directly in front of him.

_CLASH!_

His body collapsed against the man who had suddenly appeared. He looked up. Black hair. Wide jaw. Stubble. Glowing eyes. Enormous sword held casually in one hand. The other arm had automatically caught him.

“Hew… ley?”

The man did something to their attackers that he couldn’t see, then looked down. He seemed surprised.

“They did this to a member of the regular army?” The man sounded very angry.

“Hewley… Za… ck….”

“Zack?” The man started to say something. Changed his mind. “What’s your name?” The question was gentle.

His name.

_My name?_

“My… name….”

“There they are!”

The man cursed and held him tighter. “Mako addiction… this isn’t good.” There more sounds of fighting as the man dragged him along with the arm that was still around his waist. He let it happen. It was comforting. As was the soft green light.

They stopped moving.

“How is this- nevermind. Fusion might be exactly what you need to recover.” The voice softened again. “Do the best you can, trooper. Don’t worry; I’ll take care of you.”

The moving started again. He couldn’t keep track of what they were doing but it felt… nice.

A second light joined the green one and they both flared.

Sodalite sighed, raised his head, and opened his eyes to glare at the small army gathered around them, weapons pointed. Raising his arms, he called forth Chiastolite’s sword and Chrysoprase’s rifle. The infantry panicked and shot off several rounds to no avail.

With a small gesture, the sword and gun fused into the weapon that was his and only his: a pair of unornamented but powerful gunblades, one for each set of arms.

His larger set of eyes focused on the main group directly in front of him, his upper arms aiming the firearm where it would do the most damage. The two smaller eyes darted around, making sure none on the fringe would get any ideas. The second gunblade was on standby.

Frowning, he rumbled, “I do not think I need to tell you what will happen if you insist on getting in my way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, chapter 4! 
> 
> Sodalite will be described in greater detail later, but here's a sneak peak (gunblades are awful to draw DX):
> 
> https://40.media.tumblr.com/ed2f49ac081c551ab6032d6e6685d0c0/tumblr_nunbkqPbNV1rujaqqo1_540.jpg
> 
> EDIT: I've noticed this before but AO3 seems to delete whole lines when I paste the chapter into the textbox. I think I managed to catch every instance but.... Crap, it deleted parts of this note too. Well, all I said was thank you to everyone who read. I hope the chapter met your expectations!


	5. Tarantella

_Vwoosh!_

The powerful fire spell shot past Zack and felled a group of infantrymen who were sneaking up behind him. He’d have gotten them himself but he was still recovering from the swing that took down a few guns pointed at Genesis.

He chanced glancing over at him. “Thanks! By the way, you don’t think we’ll have to…?”

“Fuse again? Hardly,” sneered Genesis as he spun his broadsword around with a grace Zack had never had with the weapon, “For all their numbers, there’s no threat here.” Though he said that, it was obvious that the numbers _were_ taking their toll. Especially as neither had been in the best of shape to begin with.

“If you’re sure.” He tried to keep his tone light but he was secretly happy; Fire Opal had been a pleasure to be until he was attacked.

_I wonder how it would’ve gone if you were around like you promised, Angeal_ , he thought as he barreled his way back to Genesis’ side, _Would I have enjoyed my first time?_ He winced at his mind’s poor wording.

“You need to pay more attention” was his only warning before Cissnei appeared out of nowhere and cut him off, using his momentum to slam him into the ground. It was all he could do to avoid being stabbed by her shuriken. Throwing her off, her rolled to his feet and matched his back up against Genesis, who had himself moved for precisely that reason.

The army swarmed closer.

“It’s over, Zack, Genesis,” said Cissnei, lightly brushing a few specks of dirt off her suit, “Give up while you can.”

“As if.”

“There’s no way I can do that!”

He heard a soft thud and felt a prick at the back of his neck.

She sighed. “I had a feeling it would come down to this.” Her face didn’t look particularly regretful, though that might have been the fault of his increasingly unfocused vision.

_Just how high a dose of tranquilizer did they need to take down a SOLDIER anyway?_ Zack wondered as he toppled into the arms of a trooper.

* * *

 

_High_ , he groaned when he woke up to a horrible headache. It didn’t help that the alarms were going off, shrill and piercing even in his containment cell. At first he was hopeful that Genesis had escaped and was coming to rescue him but then he heard a groan from the cell to his left.

“Genesis?”

“Shut up.”

“Okay then.”

* * *

 

Of the sixty-seven infantrymen that could fit themselves in the room, Sodalite could only count eleven that showed the proper degree of fear in the face of a hostile fusion. Presumably they were Wutai veterans. These were the ones he focused on.

“This will be your one and only chance to lay down your arms, men,” he said, lowering into a squat to look them in the eyes, “Too much is at stake to let you stop me. I am prepared to fight to the death.”

“Sorry, but there’s too much at stake on our end too… sir.” The honorific was added hesitantly, understandably so given that one of his components had no rank.

Sodalite nodded in resignation and looked out at them all with a heavy heart. He swung his secondary gunblade up to rest his forehead against it, inwardly stewing in guilt over the good men who would die that day.

The troopers recognized the gesture and opened fire again to their own downfall. While his blades did not have the reach of Chiastolite’s, he more than made up for it with his larger body and longer strides. He kicked the solid, metal door of the laboratory out of its frame, leaving behind a room of dead soldiers.

The hallway was filled with infantry as well, packed so tightly that Sodalite could only frown at how tactically unsound their approach was. He did not bother felling anymore of them; throwing himself forward in sprint worked well enough to scatter and incapacitate their forces. Those troopers that could not move out of the way in time –which were many, given how little room there was to maneuver- were knocked back into walls and each other’s weapons.

The stairwell was similarly crowded. Clearing it was a simple matter of leaping from the top of the flight onto the landing, crushing the five troopers directly underneath him and stunning the rest with the force of the impact.

Eager to remove himself so as not to cause more bloodshed, he almost did not hear the dull bang of someone striking metal over the cries of the Shinra troops. It could barely be heard through the wall to his right –if not for the greatly heightened senses of two enhanced individuals as one he doubted he would have heard it. Following the hall to find the source of the noise, he found himself in the 67th floor’s detainment facility. Behind him, troopers arrived at the scene and assumed that he’d slipped past them, going back down the way they came.

The first two cells on his right were occupied and the sound was coming from the second. Before he could investigate further, a voice came from the cell closest to him. No words were spoken but he recognized that moan of misery.

Without another thought he punched the door in, knowing that Andesine would have quick enough reflexes to dodge.

As he suspected, Andesine emerged unhurt aside from his irritation. However, his sharp-tongued remarks were cut off when he set eyes upon his savior. “Angeal… you’re-“ He remembered himself. “If you’re here that must mean Angeal is well enough to fuse?”

“That is correct. Of the two of them it was Chrysoprase who was worse off,” said Sodalite, smiling softly from fondness that had bled over from Chiastolite. He tenderly brushed back Andesine’s bangs to look upon his Jewel.

“Hey, what’s going on out there?” called Angel Aura from his cell.

Sodalite chuckled and stabbed through the door with both of his blades, cutting through the mechanism that kept it locked. It was not because he doubted Angel Aura’s abilities that he used a different method –rather, he was sure that Chiastolite’s pupil had his body pressed too close to the door to avoid being injured

Angel Aura easily knocked the door down himself, bounding out to take in the sight of his friends. When he realized who he was looking at, he broke out into grin.

“You are looking well.” Sodalite inspected him carefully to make sure he had not injured himself, lifting him into the air and rotating him to see every potential injury. Sure enough, his torso was covered in shallow slices, minor burns, and extensive bruising from what Sodalite could see through the torn fabric. “I see you have not learned caution.”

“What, four years and _that’s_ all you two have to say to me?” Angel Aura groaned, squirming under the prodding. When he was put down, the smile returned and he asked, “So, how does it feel, you guys? Angeal, you better be taking care of Cloud –he’s had a rough time of it.” Though he spoke it like a warning, his smile had grown with relief.

Nodding, Sodalite replied, “You need not worry, Angel Aura. I am stable –remarkably so. I am in no danger of splitting before we can escape from this place.”

“And how, might I ask, do you plan to do that? I’m sure you’ve noticed that we’re in no condition to be in an extended battle,” said Andesine.

Sodalite could hear the jealousy, resentment, and self-hatred in his words. He placed a gentle hand on Andesine’s shoulder, lightly rubbing the portion of his back that his fingers fell on. Relaxing under his touch, Andesine gave a minute nod to indicate that he knew he was wanted.

With that settled, Sodalite returned to the question. “We should not need to go down many floors to find a window.”

“And what, we’ll jump?” Angel Aura laughed until he realized that he was correct. “Wait, are you serious?! There’s no way that’s safe!”

He cocked his head to the side and considered what possible objections one might have with the plan. “Hm, I had not thought of it that way. You are right.”

Angel Aura breathed a sigh of relief.

Sodalite nodded, confident in how to fix the problem. “With as much fighting as we can expect escaping downwards, it makes far more sense to break out from this level.”

“Wait, what?!”

Andesine waved him aside before he could ready himself to charge back down the hall he had come from. “If we’re doing this, you might as well let me weaken the wall for you first.” He unlocked the other cells one by one until he found their confiscated equipment. He tossed Angel Aura his belongings and then got into a casting stance.

“Wait, wait, Genesis, you’re not seriously going along with this?!”

Quaga had activated before Angel Aura could even finish his objection, Andesine’s smirking at his panic. The outer wall of the building, though thick and well-enforced, had not been made to withstand such a high level spell from such a powerful mage. Spears of rock punched far enough through the metal that daylight could be seen.

“I take it back! Let’s find a window!”

Sodalite was halfway down the hall when Angel Aura’s anxious yelp registered in his mind, already too late to stop. He succeeded in reaching the rocks before they could fade away and rammed them further, removing an entire chunk of the wall. The other two joined him, Andesine with his wing already out and Angel Aura apparently resigned.

“Angeal? Cloud? Which one of you did this even come from? ‘Cause that’s the one I going to need to have a talk with when this is over.”

“That’s not quite how fusion works,” Andesine informed him smugly, wrapping his arms around Angel Aura’s waist and lifting off.

They were immediately beset upon by three helicopters, no doubt attracted by the commotion. As Andesine was clearly too tired to do anything more than fly straight, Sodalite backed up and took a running leap out of the hole, launching himself at the nearest.

The pilot screamed and ejected.

It still had enough altitude when he reached it for him to use it as a springboard, flipping over a stream of bullets to land on the next closest. The pilot almost maneuvered away from him but the bulky machine was too slow. Sodalite was able to latch onto the landing skids, jerking it off balance. While the pilot was busy uselessly firing off rounds in hopes of knocking him off, he reach up and tore off the rotor, flinging it like a boomerang at the third helicopter.

It struck.

Fortunately for him, the third pilot flew their damaged vehicle in close in an effort to save the pilot of the one he was clutching. He transferred his grip to the one in better repair and smashed a hand through the glass of the cockpit, yanking the cyclic stick to aim it back towards Shinra Headquarters.

The two pilots resisted him feebly for a few moments, then looked despairingly at each other and released their parachutes.

When he was close enough to the building, he latched onto it and swung himself away from the helicopter’s crash, taking a moment to soothe Chrysoprase’s nerves. A motherly voice aided his efforts. He guessed it was from one of his component’s memories but had not the time to pay it any further mind.

Sodalite shimmied down the side until he could safely jump across to the roof of a nearby building. From there he ran across the rooftops, occasionally swatting away pursuers. Andesine and Angel Aura were long gone but he was sure they would find him once he left the city. He did not have far to go to achieve freedom.

Behind him he could hear the whirring of a large machine, presumably one of Scarlet’s toys.

He ran faster.

* * *

 

Nearly a day later, Sodalite found them hiding amongst the rocks at the foot of the nearby mountain range. Relieved, he finally let himself de-fuse.

Angeal, Cloud, Zack, and Genesis stood on wobbly legs, together for the first time.

It was Zack who broke the silence. “So, is now a good time to talk?” He flopped to the ground to rub at sore calves. The rest of them glanced back to make sure they hadn’t been followed and joined him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Next up: exposition.


	6. Ronde de Jambe

Zack felt better than he had for a long time. They’d escaped Shinra, he hadn’t stuck around long enough for the scientists to poke around his body, and, best of all, his friend and mentor were alive and awake and healthy. Even Genesis had cheered up a bit.

Since no one else was saying anything, he decided to start. “Hey, Cloud, feeling better now?”

His friend’s eyes widened and he brought his legs more tightly against his body. He seemed surprised that anyone was involving him in the conversation, much less asking after him. “I’m fine,” he said quietly. His eyes flicked nervously between Angeal and Genesis.

“That’s good,” Zack sighed, giving him an encouraging smile, “Listen, Cloud, I- I don’t want to push you but I need to know how much you remember. Well, I guess I don’t _need_ to know but it would help a lot-“

“You’re babbling, Fair,” Genesis cut in. He’d been in a bad mood ever since they escaped the building for reasons Zack couldn’t figure out.

“Right. Sorry.”

Cloud looked like he wanted to run away. “…My memory’s patchy but I know Sephiroth attacked the village. And then….” He had the same pained look on his face that Angeal got whenever someone spoke of Project G. His hand went to touch the Jewel on his forehead.

“Hojo got his hands on us,” said Zack, scraping the knowledge together from his own faulty memory and the notes he’d seen scattered around Shinra Mansion, “Cloud, I’m so sorry. If I’d been a little stronger I could’ve beaten Sephiroth on my own and then you wouldn’t’ve had to go through all that.”

“It’s… not your fault.”

From anyone else the hesitation would’ve sounded like blame. But it was Cloud talking –Cloud, who always looked like he felt out of place. Zack just hoped the others would catch on quickly and not take it too much to heart. He wasn’t worried about Angeal –they _had_ fused, after all, and that had to count for something- but if there was one thing he’d learned about Genesis, it was that he was sensitive to anything resembling criticism.

Not sure how to reply, he gave Cloud’s shoulder a friendly jostle. Then he turned to the other two. “So….”

Angeal looked away, Cloud stared determinedly at the ground, Genesis’ face was unreadable, and the awkward silence stretched on.

Laughing nervously to lighten the mood, Zack said, “You know, it’ll be a lot easier to travel together if we all know exactly what’s going on.”

“You’re right,” agreed Genesis, “And do you know what would be even easier? If we went our separate ways right now.”

“What?” He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “But what about our deal? Genesis?!”

“Deal?” asked Angeal, face setting in disapproval.

Zack couldn’t hold back a wince; he felt like he was in his pre-SOLDIER days getting busted for sneaking out after curfew to train. “Uh, well, Genesis and I were kind of partnered up for a bit. We were going to save you guys together.” He squirmed under the unblinking sternness of his mentor. “He promised to tell me about all of this.” He motioned towards the Jewel on his back.

“And now they _are_ rescued, so I believe we can agree that our arrangement is no longer necessary,” Genesis said snippily, “In any case, information was never part of our original arrangement.”

“Yes it was!”

“The wind sails over the water's surface/Quietly, but surely.”

“Would you quit evading me with LOVELESS?”

Before they could argue further, Angeal had stood up and reached across the circle to place a hand on both of their shoulders. They shut up, Genesis petulantly so. (Zack, of course, was not petulant about it whatsoever.) In the background, Cloud sunk his face so deeply into his newly-reclaimed scarf that only his eyes were visible.

When he decided that they were ready to get along, Angeal released first Zack, then Genesis after a brief stare-down. “Now, what are the exact details of your contract together?”

“Well, we didn’t really….” This time Angeal outright glared at him. “I mean, it wasn’t that formal!” he backpedaled desperately, sweating under the waves of disappointment, “I mean, Cloud wouldn’t wake up and then I found out you hadn’t actually- hey, what was with that dying speech, anyway? You could’ve told me you’d survive –we could’ve talked, worked things out! I wouldn’t’ve brought you back to Shinra if you’d just _talked_ to me!”

Zack whipped around to point at Genesis. “ _That’s_ why I want –no, I _need_ \- to know what the hell is going on!” They tried to say something but he was too into the moment to notice. “What is Shinra really up to? What are Jewels? What’s up with Project G and Jenova and degradation and everything else that’s happened?”

“Zack….” It was Cloud. The murmur probably wasn’t meant to be heard if the way he curled up tighter was any indication.

Zack whispered an apology, digging into a pocket and thankfully finding the earplugs he kept there for occasions like this. After spending a week with a migraine after his senses were first enhanced, he tried to keep them on hand for new recruits.

Cloud took them and scooted closer to Zack. He didn’t retreat back into fetal position but he did keep his head down, eyes flicking between Angeal and Genesis from behind his bangs.

That seemed to be enough for Angeal to crack. “I’m sorry, Zack. I didn’t…,” he paused to share some kind of intense look with Genesis, “…I didn’t think I deserved a second chance.”

“For what?” Zack griped, “And don’t give me that crap about being a monster or whatever.” He glared at Angeal until he gave a breathy laugh and wry chuckle.

“Hm, I guess I should move on then.” He got serious again. “The problem with answering your questions is that there’s so much we don’t know ourselves.” Kneeling, he drew a simple diagram into the dirt.

‘JENOVA’ was written in all capitals with two arrows pointing at the names ‘Gillian’ and ‘Sephiroth’. Two more arrows came out from ‘Sephiroth’ and ended at ‘Zack’ and ‘Cloud’. ‘Gillian’ had an arrow too, which pointed to ‘Genesis’, but ‘Angeal’ was connected to her with a zig-zagged line, like one might find on a family tree. For some reason he had a feeling that it wasn’t the first time he’d been told that information but the memory stayed out reach.

To Zack’s surprise, it was Genesis who spoke next. “I’m sure Sephiroth has mentioned to you that ‘Jenova’ is the name of his mother?” When Zack nodded, he laughed bitterly and continued. “Well, that’s not quite true.”

Putting an arm around Cloud’s shoulders to get him to un-tense after Sephiroth was mentioned, Zack asked, “He lied? But even after he went off the deep end, he seemed pretty sure.”

“Oh, I’m sure he believed it with all his heart,” sneered Genesis, looking disgusted. Angeal sent him a reprimanding glance, which he waved it off with a grimace. “In any case, to call JENOVA his mother would make her our grandmother by extension.”

Zack banished the image of toddler versions of Angeal and Genesis handing Sephiroth a ‘World’s Best Dad’ mug. “Um, okay? Can you just get to the point already?”

Exaggeratedly rolling his eyes, Genesis complied nonetheless. “I’m sure you’ve seen it. That creature trapped in the Nibelheim reactor. At the very least I know you’ve seen what was spawned from it.”

“The woman in the tube?” Cloud spoke softly, unsure of his place in the conversation until Zack and Angeal gave encouraging nods. “I didn’t get a good look at her but she was… inhuman.”

“As good a word as any to describe it,” said Genesis, tapping each letter of her name one by one, “ **J** ewel-based **E** quilibratory **N** eo-organism **o** f **V** ariable **A** utonomy. JENOVA.”

“But what does that mean?” asked Zack, unhappy to be lost before they even brought out the big science words.

Angeal took up the explanation again, saying, “No one, not even Hojo, has been able to figure out exactly what JENOVA is. It was initially thought to be the remains of an Ancient but scientists soon realized that that wasn’t the case.”

“All that we know for sure is that it’s a semi-organic entity with a Jewel at the center of its being.” Genesis paused to fiddle with the hair dangling in front of his Jewel. “Its cells are highly adaptable, binding easily with host bodies and sharing traits.”

“You mean like with the copies?” He then realized that Cloud had no idea what they were talking about. He began to explain but Cloud shook his head, mouthing that he should save it for later.

“ _Exactly_ like the copies,” agreed Genesis, “for Project G was an experiment in creating humans with the abilities of JENOVA by injecting them with its cells.”

It sounded familiar and it took a moment for Zack to realize why. “Wait, Hollander mentioned something about that. Your mother was given the cells….” He glanced down at the diagram. It made sense now that he’d been reminded –Angeal was the only one to get the cells by natural birth. The arrows indicated those who received the cells by force. His brow furrowed as he glanced back at his and Cloud’s names. “Wait, so then that means-“

“That’s right. Four years ago your lives were saved by Hojo to use in experiments with Sephiroth’s cells. Both of you possess JENOVA cells by way of Sephiroth.” The words came out in a hiss.

Moving closer, Angeal placed a hand on Genesis’ knee, never looking away from Zack. They were less a circle now and more two pairs facing each other. “The cells on their own do very little. At least compared to when the subject receives the full treatment.” The hand that wasn’t in contact with Genesis rose and traced the shape of the Jewel on his neck. “Once the cells have fully bonded with the host, the combined cells can be used to synthesize a Jewel.”

“And then the Jewel replaces the host’s body, giving them all kinds of powers,” Zack said slowly, absentmindedly rubbing circles on Cloud’s shoulder, “But wait, if your body isn’t real, how can you degrade? I mean, a rock can’t rot.”

Genesis looked at him like he was an idiot. “My Jewel itself is flawed. Unlike Angeal, who shares the genes of the host his Jewel was based off of, I am of no relation to Gillian. Though my Jewel successfully joined with me and my original body destroyed, for that brief moment two incompatible forces were made to join and it forever left its mark.”

“Uhhh….”

“If all your questions have been answered?” he snapped. They weren’t but it didn’t seem to matter to Genesis, who rose and held out a hand to Angeal. “There’s no need for us to remain together any longer. Serpentine is hardly ideal for restoring my cells but at least it’s better than Fire Opal.”

Angeal took Genesis’ hand. However, rather than stand, he gave a brief, gentle tug to indicate he wanted Genesis to sit back down.

“Angeal?” Zack and Genesis said in unison, the former hopefully and the latter with discomfort.

“What good does it do to split our forces now?” Angeal pointed out, “Shinra has more than enough forces to track us all down. We’re stronger as a group. Also….” His eyes flicked over to Zack. “I’ve already abandoned my student once. Now that we’re in the same position, I have no grounds to do so again.”

Genesis was furious in a way Zack had never seen him before. Seeing that Angeal was serious, he spat, “Fine!” and let go of his hand, moving to lean a boulder rather than sit again.

When all he did was stare was stare sullenly at him, Zack stood and swung the buster sword off of his back and held it in front of him as Angeal had done so long ago. Angeal joined him, grasping the hilt with him. They both lowered their foreheads to the blade.

“Embrace your dreams,” murmured Angeal.

“And whatever happens, protect your honor as SOLDIER,” finished Zack.

In the background, Genesis made a derisive noise. He couldn’t dwell on it though –out of nowhere Cloud spoke up again.

“Zack, what’s that in your pocket?”

He checked. There was a small square of paper that he’d when searching for the earplugs that had apparently been partially drawn out in the process. Swinging his sword back onto its harness, he pulled it out fully and unfolded it.

_Zack—_

_Angeal copies. Genesis copies. Four years ago they began behaving erratically, shortly after a certain event. Their behavior already shows signs of shifting again, again in the wake of a similar event. The paragon walks again through the northern snows._

Zack stared. “This note… did Cissnei plant it on me?” He grinned at Genesis, who frowned, nonplussed by his sudden cheerfulness. “See? She was on our side after all!” Meeting each interested gaze in turn, he triumphantly exclaimed, “We have a lead on what to do next!”

“What do you mean?” asked Angeal.

He turned the paper around so the rest of them could see it, Cloud and Genesis moving to stand by Angeal. “Sephiroth’s back too. This is our chance to figure out everything!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Senior year... *melts into sludge* Thank you, everyone, for your patience.
> 
> On request, here's the gems so far:
> 
> Angeal = Chiastolite  
> Cloud = Chrysoprase  
> Genesis = Andesine  
> Zack = Angel Aura
> 
> Fusions so far:
> 
> Genesis + Zack = Fire Opal  
> Angeal + Cloud = Sodalite  
> Angeal + Genesis = Serpentine
> 
> Unless something unexpected happens, I should have the next chapter in next Sunday. Until then, thank you all for reading!


	7. Canyengue

“Two tickets to Costa del Sol, please!” Zack said cheerfully, handing over the gil. Next to him Cloud adjusted his hat again, the newsboy cap being the only thing they could find on short notice to cover his distinctive hair.

The ticketseller –unfortunately a member of the passenger ship’s crew and not one stationed at Junon— narrowed his eyes as he handed them over. “Have I seen-“

“Nope, we’ve never met before!” He laughed, grabbed the tickets, and hurried away with Cloud. “Come on, Cole!” he said loudly as they left, “We should get some lunch before the ship leaves!”

Once they had slipped fully into the bustle of the commercial district, Cloud leaned in to whisper, “You’re overdoing it.”

He sighed. “Yeah, I know. I just can’t help being worried about these disguises, you know?” They weren’t disguises so much as minor wardrobe adjustments. Concerned about the trail they’d leave if they stopped in Kalm, the four of them had avoided it altogether, proceeding instead to the chocobo ranch to the east. They sent Cloud in to pay for whatever clothes the owner had lying around, which they changed into when they reached Junon.

Cloud had reluctantly replaced his regulation scarf with a bulkier one, checkered white and wine red. Of the three that went in disguise –Genesis taking one look at the clothes and declaring he would find his own way to their destination—, he was the only one who was able to wear armor, as the small, beat-up leather jacket retained enough cushioning to hide his shoulder guards.

As for Zack, he claimed a pair of patchy trousers and a trench coat from the pile Cloud brought back. Both items stank strongly of chocobo. The only hat had gone to Cloud –his Nibelheim blond and uncontrollable locks would’ve left too much of an impression— but fortunately Zack’s hair had always been easily malleable. All he’d had to do was wet it, run his fingers through, and press down in the right places, the end result looking like Tseng with bangs.

“Let’s just board,” Cloud said uneasily.

Without looking, Zack reached over and lightly shook his shoulder. Since waking up, Cloud had picked up a habit of constant vigilance, mapping the terrain advantages, disadvantages, and escape routes of his general vicinity with more diligence than even Angeal. He felt horrible that his company wasn’t enough to make him feel safe like it used to. But what could he do besides be there?

A nearby clock caught his eye. “I don’t know, the ticket says we’ve still got a couple hours before setting sail. It’s better to keep moving.”

“Why?”

It took him a moment to remember that Cloud most likely didn’t wander around under the Plate like Zack did. “Did I ever mention my girlfriend to you?”

Cloud paused and shook his head.

“Well, she lives in the slums. After the first few visits, you start to learn how to keep your head down, you know?” Sometimes literally. Though everyone found out who he was almost immediately, it was easier to move around when they didn’t have to see his eyes. “If we board now, anyone who wants to follow us will be able to corner us really easily. The trick is to move around, do normal things. Speaking of which….”

Zack all but ran into the diner. It was perfect: reputable-looking enough that anyone who saw them enter wouldn’t associate them with the criminal element, low enough quality that no one would care about them.

“Should we really be here?” Cloud was looking around for all the exits again. This time Zack let him, since it would be helpful if someone _did_ show up looking for them.

Shrugging, he replied, “Why not? We’ve got time to kill and it’s a good time to eat.” It was almost noon, in fact, and his stomach was displeased. “If we’re in-and-out it won’t be a problem.”

“…Okay.” It clearly wasn’t okay, given that Cloud didn’t once look at the menu, but it couldn’t be helped.

He was still distracted when the waiter came by so Zack ordered for them both. Soon he had some kind of local seafood dish that he shoveled into his mouth with gusto, leaving Cloud to stare at his bowl of dumpling stew. There was a sweet potato dish Zack had wanted to try but he’d long since learned that places outside of Gongaga just didn’t make them right.

After eating quietly for a minute, the silence was too stiff to bear.

“So…,” he mumbled a mouthful of some kind of shellfish, “Now that we’re alone, what do you think of Angie and Jenna?” The codenames they’d agreed upon were ‘Harvey’ and ‘Richard’ but it was Angeal who’d come up with them. He didn’t really understand how to avoid people’s interest. As soon as they split up, he’d immediately started referring to them by _his_ names.

“…They’re okay. I guess Angie was… nice.”

The fake name came out strangely, though Zack guessed he was one of the only people to know Cloud enough to tell. Still, it did its job –the handful of eavesdroppers curious about the new faces in their insular diner stopped listening when they realized it was an awkward young man getting relationship advice. Zack mentally thanked the Shinra secretaries for talking loudly enough for him to observe the technique.

“You just need to get to know them. Even Jenna’s not that bad, once you get past the rough patches.” Seeing the look of disbelief aimed at him, he protested, “We really were getting along pretty well before. H- uh, Jenna just started acting weird when Angie came back. I don’t really get it.”

Cloud finally began eating. He did so with the woodenness of a new recruit at the end of a drill session. “They’re close,” he commented, picking the bowl up to sip out extra broth, “I noticed when I was with Angie.” He placed the bowl down and stared at it, head hanging. “So that’s what it’s like to be….”

“Be?”

Eyes flicking around the room, he murmured too softly for any but a SOLDIER to hear, “Brothers-in-arms.” The mouth movements were so slight Zack didn’t think even a Turk would’ve been able to read them.

He thought about that, mashing up the remaining fish with his fork. “Huh, I guess you’re right. I’m so used to thinking of Jenna as an enemy, you know?” He groaned. “No wonder Jenna still hates me. For so long Jenna was just the one who got between me and Angie.”

“I think Jenna feels the same. That you’re in the way, I mean,” said Cloud, “…Sonia told me.”

“Sonia? Oh, Sonia!”

 _Going by the pattern, he has to mean Sodalite,_ he thought, scraping his plate off into his mouth, _I got some idea of what was going on with Genesis while I was Fire Opal, so I guess it would make sense that Cloud was able to pick up on a thing or two._

Cloud didn’t say anything else after that. Since Zack wasn’t sure what else to talk about, he quietly paid the bill. Soon it was back to wandering the streets with a skittish Cloud. He tried pointing out local landmarks to lighten the mood to little success, at best receiving disinterested grunts as his friend eyed anyone who stopped within ten feet of them. Eventually Zack grabbed and held his hand as they walked, squeezing lightly and rubbing circles with his thumb to calm the tremors.

He was ashamed to admit it, but it was a relief when it was time to board and he no longer had to steer them through the crowds. Instead he found the most defendable corner of the deck and sat them down there, ready to leap overboard again at a moment’s notice. Cloud seemed to appreciate it, at least enough to reduce his fidgeting to the occasion visual sweep.

At one point they caught sight of the oversized green raincoat Angeal had opted to wear –since it was large even on him, it gave the illusion of a slimmer, less SOLDIER-y build— but he didn’t make contact, most likely due to the attention the coat was drawing. As they retreated to their cabin for the night, Zack saw a pair of mako eyes from the roof of the ship’s superstructure. It was the one and only sign of Genesis’ presence the whole trip. He couldn’t find even a single black feather to give him away.

Cloud was the very first person off the ship when they landed.

* * *

 

Cloud’s hands twitched for the rifle currently being held by Genesis. They were at the rendezvous point: a section of rooftop hidden from view by the surrounding roofs. He didn’t like it. If a helicopter flew by they’d be spotted immediately. And Zack. Zack was doing squats. He said it was to keep busy but Cloud hear the scrape of his boots against the roof every time he adjusted his stance. What if someone inside heard too?

“Hey Cloud, join me?” Zack suggested. There was an anxious edge to the request that Cloud never would’ve picked up on before enhancements.

“Not interested,” he replied immediately. Then, to soften it: “Sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it!” He said that but his laugh afterwards was full of worry.

Cloud hated answering like that. It made him sound ungrateful for everything Zack had done for him. Was doing. Planned to do. But.

_Thunk._

It took all his self-control not to either rush the source of the sound with his newfound strength or flee over the nearest edge.

“Don’t waste your energy,” Genesis scolded, walking down the sloping roof, “If you collapse of fatigue later, you can be sure I won’t be stopping for you.”

_Thump, thump, thump._

It was too loud. Someone was going to notice. He scanned the rims of the roofs for anyone who might be coming to investigate. No one. He didn’t feel any safer. He felt like he was suffocating.

“Good to see you too,” said Zack with joking grumpiness. He did stop though.

Genesis scoffed at the greeting and gave him a look that Cloud was sure he ought to understand. Without being Sodalite, he didn’t have confidence in interpreting Genesis’ moods. Sometimes the meanings of things he said and did felt impossibly obvious. Other times they itched at the back of his mind. This was one of those times.

At least he’d stopped walking.

_Thud._

Only for Angeal to arrive and walk even more noisily. Cloud bit back a protest, not wanting to deal with the consequences of speaking up. As he’d told Zack, he liked Angeal to an extent, but that didn’t mean he was comfortable with him.

“Is everyone alright?” asked Angeal, surveying them as he did so. His eyes lingered on Cloud.

He squirmed.

After the others responded positively, Angeal gave a firm nod. “I wish we had time to rest up fully. I know it’s been a difficult journey.”

 _On the run with two near-strangers, one who hates us? ‘Difficult’ is one way to put it._ Again he refrained from voicing his thoughts. He was sure that even Zack wouldn’t care for it.

“You’ve seen our target then?” asked Genesis.

Angeal nodded. “Exiting town to the north.”

“But why? There’s nothing there but ocean!” Zack protested, “And didn’t Cissnei’s note say he was in Nibelheim? Why go there just to come to Costa del Sol?”

Genesis responded as he often did to Zack: with mocking. They bickered, Angeal tried to mediate, and Cloud mulled over a thought that had been bothering him for a while, unconsciously glaring at a nearby shingle.

“Nibelheim?” he finally said aloud. When this got the others’ attention, he ducked down a bit but clarified, “The letter. It never said Sephiroth was in _Nibelheim._ ” He narrowed his eyes, piecing it together. “…The northern continent.”

“But that still doesn’t explain why he went to Nibelheim first.” This time he could tell what Genesis was feeling. Spite. At having fallen into the same trap as the rest of them.

Cloud stayed silent. He didn’t have an answer.

“Cloud has a good point.” Surprisingly, it was Angeal coming to his defense. “We assumed the letter meant Nibelheim because that was where he….”

_Went on a rampage? Went insane?_

“…So… we’re on the wrong continent? Please don’t make me swim again.”

“Please feel free to take credit for your own foolish idea, Fair.”

It was decided that Genesis would track Sephiroth to make sure he was really heading north, Zack being tasked with arranging a boat if it came down to it. Cloud would gather supplies. Angeal was on standby in case something went wrong.

Surprising him again, Angeal held Cloud back after the others left.

“Sir?”

“There’s no need for that,” he said gently, very carefully meeting his eyes, “Now that they’re gone, would you like to tell me how you’re really doing? I know Zack can be a little… overeager at times, and Genesis is more demanding than he used to be.”

Cloud said nothing.

“If you need something, make sure to let one of us know. You may not be a 1st but you’re SOLDIER now. And we look after our own.” He clapped Cloud on the shoulder.

Cloud said nothing.

But he did smile a little.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, this chapter just did not want to happen. Probably 'cause it wasn't in the draft. Still, I felt that there ought to be some kind of chapter like this. Can't always skip the travelling. I wanted to show their early dynamic too.
> 
> Thank you, everyone, for being patient!
> 
> Angeal = Chiastolite  
> Cloud = Chrysoprase  
> Genesis = Andesine  
> Zack = Angel Aura
> 
> Fusions so far:
> 
> Genesis + Zack = Fire Opal  
> Angeal + Cloud = Sodalite  
> Angeal + Genesis = Serpentine


	8. Sacada

Initially, it was one of the grotesque new breed of copies that Genesis found, not his target. The creature shambled noisily through the brush, making so much of a ruckus he’d at first feared it was the puppy trailing after him in his usual unsubtle manner. However, as it approached he felt a chill wrap itself around his heart, fierce enough that for a moment he feared he would fall to his knees.

He saw it then—from its dead, pupil-less eyes to the misshapen joints that tore through its flesh to the scalp in tatters from twigs that had snagged and ripped at its hair. That oh-so-familiar silver hair. Genesis longed to kill the abomination, if only to bring an end to the horrid state the thing inspired in him as all of them did when allowed to live; that feeling of utter revulsion that suffused his being was unbearable, true, but the real threat was the sense of awe and adoration that inexplicably followed. A part of him desired to bare the back of his neck for it to do with as it willed, and he was horrified to note that it was the same part that was responsible for his ability to control his own copies.

Swallowing his nausea with the ease of one used to carrion-laden battlefields, Genesis followed after it, shuddering each time a clump of hair or skin rent from it by thorn or branch brushed against him. This copy was worse off than most of its kind, a statement not lightly made of the monsters.

Following was the correct choice, as it lead him straight to that which appeared to be his old friend. ‘Sephiroth’ stood quietly on the shoreline, merely staring at the sea even as he was approached by the copy. It stumbled up against his back and still he did not move.

And then Genesis saw why.

In a flash of light—that incandescent silver-blue of a Jewel he knew better than his own—the creature fused with ‘Sephiroth’, the mockery of his former comrade collapsing as a full set of wings emerged from his back in a spray of blood. When the figure remained prone, Genesis approached, observing, repulsed, that parts of the wings hadn’t developed proper feathers, instead bearing the skeletal form of those of a newly-hatched chick. An ooze of blood and that dark, vile ichor that the unidentified copies were filled with thoroughly coated what feathers it did possess.

Before he could get close enough to properly examine the body, the wings spread swiftly, dislodging most of their distasteful coating, and flapped, raising the combined being into the air without any apparent consciousness on the part of the part that was Sephiroth.

He watched it fly until it had disappeared into the churning horizon.

* * *

 

“So what you’re saying is that one of those creepy copies that attacked us in Nibelheim showed up, fused with what was probably a Sephiroth copy, and flew off towards the Northern Continent?”

Genesis rolled his eyes and said dryly, “Is that not exactly as I just stated?”

Waving off Angeal, who looked ready to intervene on his behalf, Zack shrugged with a brief laugh. He tried to give Genesis a friendly smile. Genesis was unimpressed.

_Man, what do I have to do to get him to like me? At least a little?_ he groused internally. It wasn’t like before, when he was satisfied with nudging at the distance between them as they travelled—he really wanted to get along with the other 1 st for Angeal’s sake, not to mention making it a smoother transition for Cloud. Zack was beginning to feel the strain of acting as the conduit/buffer between the three of them.

_And it’s not going to get easier any time soon_ , he thought as he watched everyone’s stress levels skyrocket from the tension, _When did_ I _become the mature one?_

“Anyway,” he said, since Angeal and Genesis were arguing by way of stern looks at each other again and Cloud had restarted taking inventory of supplies for the third time, “it’s pretty small and a little leaky but I found us a boat.” He turned to Cloud. “Want to help me load the supplies up?”

“Okay,” Cloud agreed almost before he was done speaking. They grabbed the bundles of food, medical supplies, and miscellaneous camping items and hurried off, the two left behind watching for a moment before launching into an entirely new silent argument.

Zack lead the way to the boat, which he’d hidden just outside of town. It was a motorboat with just enough deck space for all of them to stand. It also had a cabin but with as much stuff as they needed to bring for the trip, he could already tell it would end up being used mostly as a storage closet.

Checking to make sure the tape covering a hole in the bottom was holding—it was… sort of—Zack kicked open the cabin door and dumped his armful of canvas in a corner. “Anything that needs to be kept cold? Because that’s going to need to be eaten first. I couldn’t find a boat with a refrigerator.” At least not one within the means of a fugitive who had spent four years as an unperson. The gil that could be taken from monsters only went so far.

Cloud shook his head. “I wasn’t sure how long it would take to get there so I didn’t buy anything that doesn’t keep.”

Zack winced. “We’re going to be eating a lot of crackers, aren’t we?”

“And peanut butter. Dried fruit and meat. Energy bars. Water.”

Sighing, he helped Cloud settle the last of it into place. He breathed out a sharp gust of air and looked over at his friend, suddenly feeling the strong urge to ruffle his hair. He did so with a big grin. “You’ve got a good head on your shoulders, Cloud.”

He gave Zack a look halfway between fond and affronted, finally swatting his hand away when Zack decided he was having too much fun to _not_ completely mess up his hair. And he was right—Cloud gave him an annoyed glare that was ruined by the ruffled baby bird look he had going on.

“Keep that up and I won’t,” he retorted without much heat.

Zack smiled and took a step forward so he could return to his squats. _One. Two. Three. Four._

“Why do you do that?”

“Huh?” _Five. Six. Seven._ “Oh, you mean squats? It’s a good workout.”

Cloud frowned. “But why always squats? There are other good workouts that you can do on the go….”

He had to think to remember what had started it. “Well, it’s a _really_ good workout. And Angeal can get a little hardcore about training.” Pausing long enough to turn and throw a grin, he said, “Since you’ll be joining us, you might want to get whatever head start you can. Believe me, once Angeal’s confident that we’re in the clear, he’s going to make us catch up on lost time.”

Paling, Cloud hurried to join the exercise, keeping up much better than he’d expected thanks to his new enhancements. Soon they were completely in sync, and that was how their other two companions found them.

Genesis of course scoffed, though his contempt might have had more to do with the collection of weapons and armor he’d held onto for them for the duration of the trip to Costa del Sol, finally retrieved from wherever he’d hidden them. While Angeal carried the bulk of it (or, to be more precise, the buster sword), he still had Cloud’s rifle and their uniforms. The latter he dropped just barely clear of a puddle, the former being shoved into Cloud’s arms as Genesis made his way to the front of the boat and slid into the driver’s seat.

By then, the two of them had stopped exercising, Cloud out of embarrassment and Zack in order to receive his sword back.

Holding it, he had a thought. “Hey, why are you giving this back to me anyway? I mean, no matter what happened before, you haven’t lost your honor at all. Cloud’s proof of that.” He smiled at the memory of the literally larger-than-life figure that had destroyed the door of his cell, along with much of the rest of Shinra headquarters. “I’m seriously tired of everyone running around and hurting themselves over this stuff.”

Angeal shook his head. “No, I want you to have it. Consider it a mentor’s atonement for having failed his student.”

“Angeal, you- agh!” Zack cried out in frustration, throwing up his arms. Only Cloud’s improved reflexes allowed his to dodge getting smacked by the sword he was still holding as he did so.

“It’s good to see you too, Zack.” He was annoyingly amused for someone getting scolded.

“I’m being serious here!”

“So am I.”

“You’ve been hanging out with Genesis too much! He’s rubbing off on you.” When Angeal only chuckled softly, he protested, “Hey, what’s so funny? An _geal_ ….”

His whining was ignored by its target and, when he turned to get some sympathy for his plight, he was astonished to see that Cloud was also laughing. It was the same short, shy little laugh he’d given when they first met. Zack was so happy to hear it that he let his irritation go and joined in, relieved that he could share the moment with the people he most cared about.

_Well, two of them, anyway_ , he thought, quieting down when he thought of Aerith, still in Midgar without any idea of where he was or how he was doing. If he was lucky, at least; he didn’t want to think of how worried she’d be if Shinra had released news of its renegade SOLDIERS to the public or if word got out some other way.

_Even if I could see her, she’d only get hurt._ His heart ached just thinking about it.

It was then that he noticed that Cloud and Angeal were giving him a concerned look, which he hastily returned with as strong a smile as he could manage. Fortunately, he was spared a well-meaning interrogation but Genesis’ impatient demand that everyone get themselves settled.

As Zack wanted to ask Angeal questions about his Jewel, the two of them took the deck while Cloud braved Genesis’ wrath by taking the copilot seat. He felt bad about it but Cloud insisted, pointing out that whatever they ended up doing would probably need as much space as possible. Aside from some grumbling about being stuck with an ingénue, it seemed like they were getting along.

“So then,” Angeal began once everyone was settled into place and the boat had begun putting towards its destination. The rest of what he wanted to say seemed caught in his throat. With watery eyes, he repeated, “So then. You’ve become a real SOLDIER. You finally got your Jewel.” Not even the palpable distaste they all felt towards Shinra and what it had done could drown out the pride on his face.

Taking off his coat, Zack turned and lifted his shirt so his Jewel could be seen. “Yeah. It’s been one thing after another so I haven’t really gotten the chance to figure everything out.” He released all of his frustration in one breath. “Still, we’re together now and we’ve got some time to kill.” He let the shirt drop and faced Angeal again.

“That we do,” Angeal agreed, calling towards the front, “I’m expecting you to listen, Cloud! It will take some time to explore the continent, so in the mean time we’ll be starting your training!” Turning back to Zack, he said, “It looks like it’s time for me to make good on my promise. We’ll begin with the basics.”

Zack mulled over what he already knew. “Genesis walked me through fusing and explained about how our bodies work now and you guys explained that stuff with Jenova… I don’t really know anything about the less complicated stuff though. Like how you can make your weapons appear out of nowhere!”

Giving a tolerant smile, Angeal said, “Calm down; we don’t have space for you to work off that energy yet.” He pulled down the neck of his shirt to reveal his Jewel and, in a flash of light, a copy of the buster sword appeared. “All weapons should be treated as an extension of the self. But in this case it’s a little more literal.”

“Huh….” Zack crossed his arms and looked down, thinking. “So if I want to use it, I’ll need to figure out how my Jewel works first. But how do I do that?”

“Well, it’s a bit easier if you’ve had a chance to consciously regenerate. But since that’s out of the question—“

“I see no reason why that’s the case,” Genesis called from the front.

“—it would be better if you used your memories of when you fused as a basis for understanding your relationship with your Jewel.”

He thought back to that evening in Nibelheim, however, all that came to mind was that feeling of rightness that suffused the entire dance. At least, from the point he began actively participating.

He looked at the hand he’d accepted the dance with. “Huh. I guess it’s worth a shot.”

“Zack?”

“Don’t worry, I’ve got this,” he said, shimmying his hips as Angeal watched in bemusement. When he couldn’t quite remember the moves Genesis had taught him, he made an approximation that was more fun to do anyway. Humming an upbeat song he’d heard on the radio, he swung his arms in diagonal downwards punches in time to the rhythm, doing a catwalk-like shuffle-strut he’d seen somewhere.

“…Zack, what are you doing?” asked Cloud, who had turned around at some point.

“Oh, you know. Dancing.” His eyes briefly met Genesis’ judgmental stare and he purposely botched one of the few steps he _did_ remember out of spite.

“Is that what they call it,” Genesis said drily.

Zack merely laughed, bracing himself to give summoning his weapon a try. He decided to do a long spin, ending with an arm outstretched. In it was a sword of similar size and design to the standard issue he’d used for most of his career, though he saw more than a few details that borrowed from the buster sword.

He stared a moment before laughing again. “Angeal! Angeal, did you see?!”

“I did. Good job, Zack.” Angeal casually moved out of the way of his excited student, who had turned his attention to Cloud.

“Cloud! Oh man, you have _got_ to try this out!”

“…I don’t really dance.”

Zack barely heard him as he’d already jumped back to Angeal. “So now what?! What else can we pull out of our Jewels?!” He was rocking back and forth on his feet waiting for the answer.

“Easy, Zack,” chided Angeal, “We don’t want the boat to tip, do we?” Letting out an amused sigh when Zack didn’t get any calmer, he answered, “As far as we know, the capabilities the Jewels bestow are limited to what you already know. We’ve noticed that some fusions have special powers—like Fluorite’s ability to send out percussive blasts and the way Tiger’s Eye can see heat signatures—but without a proper instructor, it’s been difficult to learn what their limitations are.”

“So that explains why everything caught on fire when we were Fire Opal,” Zack mused.

Angeal looked afraid to ask. Or at least like he was considering if he was better off not knowing. “…In any case, you’re better off learning as you go. I can’t teach you much but I can guide you and make sure the rest of your training goes as it should.”

“I’m surprised at you, Angeal—you’re being less thorough than usual,” Genesis said in what Zack could’ve sworn was a teasing tone if not for the fact that it came from _Genesis_ of all people. When Angeal merely huffed in annoyance, he continued, “Angeal left out one of the benefits of regenerating after one’s physical body has been destroyed: the ability to form any clothing one wants out of the same material as one’s body.”

“I don’t see the point in teaching my student such as unreliable technique,” Angeal argued, “Besides, even if you _appear_ to be wearing clothes, you’re still naked.”

“Oh, but Angeal,” he all but purred, “it’s so much more efficient this way, don’t you agree? It wastes less resources. Material, money, time….” A smirk spread across Genesis’ face. He was definitely, absolutely, beyond a shadow of a doubt teasing.

And Angeal _squirmed_ in response.

Everything Zack knew was _wrong_.

_Wait,_ he thought as he watched the two playfully (or, in Angeal’s case, embarrassedly) debate the pros and cons of not wearing real clothes, _didn’t Genesis’ coat gradually turn grey as he degraded? Has he been… naked this whole time? Was he naked when we were dancing? With Cloud and Angeal in the room?_ He stole a glance at Genesis and a picture of him naked and beckoning popped into his head.

“Focus, Zack,” he muttered, trying to banish images he hadn’t indulged in since Angeal took him on. Naturally, that just opened the floodgates to the self-indulgent fantasies that all SOLDIER hopefuls had had at one point or another. “Man, Aerith would be making fun of me so much if she were here right now.” As much as he wished his girlfriend would be jealous, he knew she most likely would just find it a funny story to tease him with when he got overzealous about something.

The warm, gooey feeling in his heart left when Genesis made eye contact. Somehow he didn’t think ‘You reminded me of my girlfriend’ would go over well in explaining why he’d been staring and blushing. Nor would ‘I was thinking about you naked’. Instead he laughed awkwardly and practiced summoning and dismissing his weapon a few times.

Genesis raised an eyebrow but didn’t question it.

What remained of the trip passed quickly. When the sun began to set, Zack took a breaking from training to slather some crackers in peanut butter, which he passed around. Angeal brought Genesis his share, taking over the copilot seat from Cloud, who let Zack coach him through some of the basics of swordplay when they finished eating. He was thrilled that Cloud was taking to it so fast, especially given that his only options to practice with were the notoriously difficult to use buster sword and Zack’s newly discovered Jewel weapon.

They arrived on the shore sometime around midnight. At Genesis’ insistence, they continued moving until they reached the nearby Bone Village, wherein they curled up inside a fossil and slept like the dead under Angeal’s ever-diligent watch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *RISES FROM THE ASHES OF THE SEMESTER FROM HELL*
> 
> Ohmygoddoitry.jpg
> 
> Senior year. SENIOR YEAR. S E N I O R Y E A R. Still, as of this semester, my major and minor are both completed, I've exceeded the number of required credits, and I only have one single class I'm required to take left. Last semester is gonna be a breeze. Hopefully.
> 
> This story is not abandoned! ﾟ*｡୧☉□☉୨ﾟ*｡
> 
> In other news, the day is fast approaching when it's no longer canon compliant with the Steven Universe side of things T.T I can handwave any discrepancies with our band of SOLDIERS as being the result of their unique circumstances but alas, Jenova herself may be a different story depending on how things play out.
> 
> Here's to a more productive and less stressful 2016!


	9. Gato

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angeal = Chiastolite  
> Cloud = Chrysoprase  
> Genesis = Andesine  
> Zack = Angel Aura
> 
> Fusions so far:
> 
> Genesis + Zack = Fire Opal  
> Angeal + Cloud = Sodalite  
> Angeal + Genesis = Serpentine

Genesis was the first up.

Angeal winced. He’d hoped it would be one of the others so it wouldn’t be as obvious that he’d never woken someone else to take over the watch.

Raising a hand to ward off comments, he said, “I know. But none of you have had it easy these past few years. And don’t think I haven’t noticed you pushing yourself.”

“You haven’t had it any easier, for all that you’ve been asleep,” murmured Genesis in that rare, soft manner he used only when convinced that he’d be abandoned if he was any harsher. He was trying to be strong in the only way he knew: complete denial of his needs and limitations.

He’d long since learned there was no arguing with that attitude. So Angeal unhappily accepted it and merely gripped Genesis’ shoulder comfortingly. He hoped it was comforting, at least.

“Let them sleep a little longer,” he whispered when he noticed him preparing to yell over his shoulder, “It’s better to let them wake up fully rested in case there’s a fight.”

Genesis snorted. “As always, you are the model commanding officer. So soft on your subordinates that they never enjoy the full military experience.” It was said lightly but he knew it was meant as a jab at Zack’s lack of discipline.

Of course, Angeal hadn’t known him for most of their lives without picking up a few tricks on how to deal with that habit towards snideness.

 “Thank you. It’s not often you give out such high praise.”

“You deserve all of it and more for being so patient with a pet that refuses to be housetrained.”

“You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself, Genesis.”

His lip curled up at the corner. “Oh, how I have missed you, _my friend_.” Drawling the last two words, Genesis leaned in closer, a full, devious smirk in place.

Angeal sighed in regret when Zack chose that moment to noisily wake up. His fuss in turn woke Cloud, who had rifle in hand before he fully registered where he was and who he was with. Even after he was convinced to put the gun down, he still stared at them in bleary-eyed confusion until Zack gently bullied him into eating some of the dried fruit.

They ate quickly, wanting to be gone before the researchers woke up and noticed the four fugitives camping out on their property. Fortunately, for all that Genesis teased him about how he interacted with the men under his command, everyone present was trained military. And so the morning necessities were dealt with efficiently and with minimal infighting.

The greatest source of conflict, in fact, came from Angeal himself. He wanted to keep their disguises for future use but the others disagreed on grounds of encumberment (Cloud), lack of necessity (Zack), and flat-out ugliness (Genesis). In the end, he sighed, folded them up, and left them in a corner in hopes that the researchers would assume that they had forgotten them at some point. He did notice that Cloud kept his scarf and hat though. Just as well—the young man seemed determined to have as little presence as possible, which only worried Angeal more the longer he knew him.

And so they set out just as the sun began to rise.

It was a concern that they wouldn’t be able to pick up the Sephiroth copy’s trail after so much time had passed but it turned out to be a moot point; soon after they began stumbling north, they sighted another, and another after that. By midday they had joined a veritable pack of not-Sephiroth’s.

None noticed the new arrivals.

“This is so creepy,” commented Zack, swerving dangerously close to Genesis to avoid a limply flapping wing, “I mean, they’re not even doing anything.”

Genesis, in a show of self-control, only lightly pushed him back. “That’s just how copies are. No, what sets these apart is their relationship with the unidentified fourth variety of copy. I find it deeply unsettling that this unknown breed so easily overpowers Sephiroth. The implications….” He glanced at Angeal for a moment.

Fear. Despair. Concern that even his envy of Sephiroth couldn’t drown out. All of them hidden under that damnable pride.

Angeal knew he should say something.

As always, he was a coward.

“We don’t have enough information to afford making any kind of assumptions,” he said instead, reaching out to steady Cloud, who’d tripped over one of the trailing wings, “For now, let’s concentrate on following the copies.”

Cloud muttered a ‘thank you’, Zack complained about the lack of conversation, and Genesis… Genesis said nothing, but his fist tightened.

And Angeal feared.

Throughout the day, he glanced back at Genesis. If he had been anxious before, he’d gotten even more so—his shoulders jerked with a little too much force, his stride became the affected strut of a stage actor, a furrow, easily mistaken for a glare, formed at his brow.

At several points their eyes met. Genesis reminded him of a child determined to break curfew with the way he stared, defiant. Ready to fight if Angeal opposed whatever plan he was concocting.

But Genesis always looked away first, and so he didn’t doubt that he would make the right decision.

And, after all, what if he was misreading the situation? Maybe it _was_ a glare—Zack kept trying to awkwardly engage him in conversation. And affected mannerisms were the norm for him. And all the other little signs could mean anything else. _Had to_ mean something else. Angeal was ashamed to once again doubt when he should be supporting, helping him to unlearn all the attitudes Shinra had instilled in him.

And if his heart disagreed? It had been wrong many times before. The proof hung from his protégé’s back.

They travelled until Cloud quietly made the call that they shouldn’t go any further that day. Seeing how late it was, Angeal was inclined to agree. They split off from the group to find shelter.

Fortunately, they didn’t have to walk far to find a massive, hollowed-out log with signs of an old campfire and a blanket blocking one end. It was Cloud who found it, determined the best adjustments to make, and finally approved the campsite with an efficiency even years of field experience couldn’t duplicate. One of the changes he started on before anyone else could point it out was the addition of a chimney hole over the makeshift fireplace inside the trunk. Angeal couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief that Zack had made himself such a dependable friend.

Wanting to learn more about said friend, Angeal quickly finished his chore of gathering what kindling he could find, only to see that Genesis had beaten him to the punch.

“—came out of your coma?” he was asking, idly arranging his helping of fruit into a circular pattern of alternating colors.

“Yeah.” With an extra scarf to wrap around his head for warmth, Cloud was able to hide his face away more than ever. “Well, not exactly. I… heard a voice. I think…?”

“A voice?”

“…Yeah. No. I don’t know.” He tried to stall for time by eating his dinner.

Too bad for him that Genesis could more than keep up with that trick.

Watching the two engage in the fruitless stalemate, Angeal made his way over to Zack, who was himself watching the proceedings from a slight distance. “Not going to intervene?”

Zack shook his head and opened his mouth to reply. A moment later he closed it without saying anything. He continued to look on. It was like a wolf watching over its pup.

Angeal laughed internally, wondering when Zack had graduated from puppy status himself.

It wasn’t much longer before Genesis’ waiting paid off.

“I… there was this feeling. Don’t know how to describe it,” Cloud said with a frown, “Wasn’t until I fused that I could think straight again though.” He turned away and began shifting their foodstuffs out of the way from where they would be sleeping.

Angeal knew a conversation ender when he saw one.

So did Genesis.

“A feeling that was also a voice? Interesting,” he commented, joining Cloud. He _just so happened_ to choose a spot where he would be forced to look at him. Cloud was much less skilled at evading conversation than Sephiroth, after all. “Did the sensation have an auditory element? Or was it more like the vibrations of distant, unheard music?”

“I- I don’t know.”

“There must be a reason you thought of it as a voice despite hearing nothing.”

“I don’t know.”

“Perhaps it was Sephiroth calling to the genes you now share.”

“ _I don’t know_ ,” Cloud snapped, slamming a jar of peanut butter down. It cracked under his new strength. Without another word, he stormed out of the log.

And now Angeal had to decide between alienating Genesis by going after Cloud or making Cloud feel like he has no place in the group by seeming to be on Genesis’ side. He glanced desperately at Zack.

Zack had grown tenser as the argument went on, though he’d managed to hold himself back from fighting Cloud’s battle. Now their eyes met and they nodded, each knowing their task.

Once Zack was gone, Angeal sighed, grabbed some dry leaves from the kindling pile, and knelt in Cloud’s vacated spot to wipe up the peanut butter that had oozed onto the ‘floor’ of the log.

“Not going to pursue our little friend?” Genesis asked bitterly, losing interest in helping now that his ulterior motive had run off.

Angeal pursed his lips and took a calming breath. He couldn’t let his irritation get the better of him. This was a situation that needed to be handled delicately. “No. This is our chance to discuss cohesion.” He hoped that by presenting it as militaristic necessity, he could avoid making it sound like a personal attack.

As per usual, his hopes were misplaced.

“This isn’t about you,” he said quickly, before Genesis could voice whatever self-hating vitriol he’d thought up, “None of us know what we think about each other as travelling companions yet. And that doesn’t just apply to those of us who haven’t travelled together before.”

Genesis barked out a short, angry laugh. “As quick as ever to appease everyone, Angeal.” He rose in an artfully languid manner that Angeal had helped him practice when they were much younger. The fact that he remembered a time when the move was clumsier didn’t make it less infuriating. “Indeed, all we need do is learn about each other and become true comrades, true friends. Between the two of us, we have wings enough to soar into the sunset of our happy ending.”

“That’s enough,” he said firmly, disposing of the spilled food directly outside their shelter, nevermind future consequences, “You and I, you and Zack, Zack and I, Zack and Cloud—having links like these isn’t the same as knowing what it is for all of us to be a group! Zack has never experienced us as a couple. I’ve never known the Zack who is a mentor. Neither of us know Cloud at all.

“We’ve all been moving so fast since coming together that we haven’t had time to sit down and do this properly! Adjusting to our new companions isn’t just essential, it’s long overdue. If we’re to meet whatever challenge Sephiroth presents, we _need_ to be able to function as one unit. Or at the very least not sabotage ourselves before we reach him! There’s room for more than just three friends!”

Angeal stopped to breathe.

Genesis happily took the inch presented him. “But not room enough for the Lover.”

He turned slowly and walked towards and past Angeal, who was shocked into immobility. He recovered in time to reach out and hook an arm around his waist and draw him back against his chest.

He needed to say something.

_Anything._

Just once he wanted to be able to help. To _do_ something. Make Genesis feel loved.

Something, anything, whatever would make everything better. Make it simple again, like it was in lazy days under the dumbapples. A word, a gesture, some quote from _Loveless_ that could be manipulated to mean something useful for once.

As he clung tighter to his lover, he cursed the play for dominating Genesis’ thoughts.

He cursed himself.

* * *

 

Zack was the one who followed him. He wasn’t surprised.

“Angeal’s dealing with Genesis,” Zack groaned, clawing at his hair with the hand his forehead wasn’t resting on, “Listen—sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

It wasn’t fine.

“Ugh!” Zack cried. He spun around with both hands on the back of his head, then shook out his arms. “It’s not fine!”

It was so Zack that Cloud laughed despite himself.

That at least got a smile. “Hey, listen, I didn’t interrupt because I wanted you guys to have a chance to get to know each other, you know? But if Genesis bothers you again, leave it to me, alright?”

“I…,” Cloud began. He stopped to think. “The stuff he was asking. You guys need to know, right?” He wiped the snow from his hands. Looked at the indent from the jar. “I should’ve just….”

“No, no, no, he was way too pushy!” Zack latched onto his shoulder. “Besides, you told him you didn’t know! He should’ve backed off.”

Cloud wondered about that. It wasn’t that didn’t know. Or maybe he didn’t. He could barely remember the events leading up to finding Angeal. Thinking about it made his head hurt. Thinking about the voice-feeling made his head hurt too.

So he didn’t.

“Don’t worry about it, Zack,” he said, squirming out from under his hand, “We don’t need to get along to fight Sephiroth. Don’t pick a fight with Genesis for my sake. Not when I probably won’t even be fighting.”

He thought miserably about his record with fighting SOLDIERs. Probably wouldn’t fight? They probably wouldn’t let him within a mile of Sephiroth.

“Hey, you beat him the first time, didn’t you?”

 _Did I?_ He thought he’d dreamed that part up.

“It was a fluke,” he said instead of voicing his memory troubles. He didn’t want to worry Zack.

Zack, of course, laughed it off. “A win’s a win! Besides, it’s not just Sephiroth that’s going to be there—if his copies start getting nasty, we’re going to need all the anti-Sephiroth forces we can get!”

Cloud shrugged. “If you say so.” It wasn’t an argument he could win, so he didn’t bother. The (entirely unwarranted) faith was comforting in a way. Or maybe it was just Zack.

“I _do_ say so!”

He gave his friend a tired smile and started walking back, Zack bounding ahead. Most likely to make sure the other two had finished talking.

Genesis. He really didn’t want to be around him more than necessary. And not just because of the difference in rank. He was too much like Zack for Cloud to be able to feel comfortable getting angry at.

Sure, the two couldn’t be more different. Except they could. Genesis was stuck-up and moody and pretentious but he had the same energy to him that first attracted Cloud to Zack. SOLDIERs and regular army alike had worshipped Sephiroth and respected Angeal, but Zack and Genesis? They were adored for their charm. Being the center of Zack’s attention was like being promoted to SOLDIER. If he’d gone rogue the way Genesis did, Cloud was sure that Shinra would lose just as large a chunk of its forces.

Dangerous levels of charisma.

They were both passionate too, and hardheaded. Neither liked to follow orders blindly either. It was no wonder they didn’t get along. Too alike in all the wrong ways. He almost wished he’d drawn out the talk, just to keep them out of each other’s way long enough to prevent the inevitable squabble.

 _Zack can act like it’s no big deal, but this is serious_ , he worried, thinking about how much tenser it was about to get.

And then Zack stepped in the peanut butter.

* * *

 

“When the war of the beasts brings about the world's end,

The goddess descends from the sky.

Wings of light and dark spread afar,

She guides us to bliss, her gift everlasting.”

Genesis paused in his recitation to glance back at Cloud, who was walking behind him with Zack. “Are you familiar with it, little cub?” His face was neutral.

_Why are you talking to me?_

“…No…?”

Besides him, Zack was signaling with his hands to stop talking. Angeal sighed from his position as the rear guard.

_…This was a mistake._

Genesis slowed down to claim Cloud’s left side. He face wasn’t neutral anymore.

He was smiling _. Actually_ smiling. Not smirking.

“Genesis…,” Angeal said with another sigh, “…Nevermind. Carry on.”

“Wait, you’re just abandoning him?!” Zack cried, dipping back to join him.

 _You just ‘abandoned’ me too, Zack_.

“You’ve lived in Midgar for years and never once saw _Loveless_? I suppose it falls to me to correct this.” His coat had a special pocket just for the book.

 _He created his coat with_ Loveless _in mind?_ Another, scarier thought occurred to him. _Is the book part of his clothes? That’s impossible. He’d have to memorize the whole thing._

“If nothing else, I’m sure that you’re aware of the missing fifth act? Fortunately for you, this particular volume collects the most popular interpretations, as well as some of the woefully lesser-known variations. As it happens, it even includes my own theories on the subject. It seems it was published as a memorial to my supposed death.” He paused to run his fingers through his hair and chuckle lightly. “A concern is misplaced but flattering nonetheless. In any case—“

_This was a mistake._

* * *

 

With Genesis off on a post-dinner walk-about and Zack burning off his excess energy by practicing sword forms with his Jewel weapon, Angeal was free to finally approach Cloud again. The infantryman scrambled to his feet when he saw him approach.

“Sir- um, Angeal?”

Angeal waved away his concern. “I’m sorry I left you at his mercy all day. Genesis… he’s always related to people better through that book. That was him trying his best to get to know you.”

Cloud seemed skeptical. “With all due respect, that doesn’t sound very much like Genesis.”

“I can see why you would think so,” he said, gesturing for them to sit together next to their campfire. From that angle, Zack looked like he was covered in flames.

 _I really should find out more about Fire Opal_. He was somewhat reluctant—not just due to everything he’d heard so far sounding like something that would’ve required him to spend a week on paperwork back when he was with Shinra, but also because he couldn’t yet face how he’d failed as a mentor. A failure sure to be highlighted by that incident.

“I’ve known Genesis almost all my life,” he continued, truncating that line of thought, “He’s not easy to get along with, and even when he does decide he likes you, that brings its own set of problems.” Did it ever. “But he has his good points. Occasionally.” He said the last part with a small, joking smile.

“I know.”

“Do you?” It wasn’t what he was expecting to hear at it and it did a lot to raise his opinion of his new companion.

“…Reminds me of Zack,” Cloud admitted.

Zack perked up at his name, jogging over.

“Genesis?” Angeal couldn’t help but laugh at the comparison. The overeager puppy and the disdainful cat? Making sure to clap Cloud on the shoulder to let him know he wasn’t making fun of him, he replied, “I don’t see it myself, but I’ll take your word for it.”

“Take his word for what?” asked Zack, having just reached them.

“We were just discussing how Genesis makes friends,” he explained, amusedly watching Zack’s face crumple in exasperation.

“I don’t get why he was bothering you so much.” Zack threw himself on the ground to Angeal’s left. Within seconds he’d already changed position to be on his back with his arms outstretched. “Sure, he quoted from it a whole bunch, but he never tried to tell _me_ about _Loveless_ back when we trying to find you guys!”

“That’s because you are clearly a lost cause.”

Genesis strode back into camp. Angeal was about to remark on how unusually quick to return he was when he spotted the deer slung over his shoulder.

Zack rolled onto his knees. “But we already ate.”

“Are you complaining?”

“…No.”

Dumping the carcass next to Zack with distaste (not that Zack seemed to notice or care, so caught up he was in jabbering to himself on what he would do with it), Genesis made to sit where he’d been lying until Angeal moved over and patted the space to his right. Genesis raised an eyebrow but complied.

Angeal side-eyed him. _It’s late_ , he tried to convey with just a meaningful look and a nod towards the food.

 _Not that late_ , was how he read Genesis’ attempt at looking innocent.

“I suppose it’s better to take advantage of having fresh meat while we have the chance,” he conceded after a glance at their dwindling food supply, “Zack, I think the fire needs to be hotter.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” He was already enthusiastically and not-at-all-carefully skinning it with his sword. “Yo, Genesis! That’s on you!”

To Angeal’s surprise, Genesis merely groaned. “To think you were _sincere_ ….” Again surprising him, Genesis got up and added fuel to the fire, following little pushes from Zack when his knowledge as a field operator wasn’t enough to build it properly. All with only minor quarreling.

After one heated spat about juices, he turned back to Cloud. “I think I’m starting to see your point.”

Cloud nodded his acknowledgment and went back to staring at Genesis. What he was thinking, Angeal couldn’t guess, but he seemed to make up his mind. He gathered himself, adjusted his scarf, and—

“I don’t think the Lover was a person.”

Everyone froze.

Cloud shifted uncomfortably but continued, “I think it was a place. Or a state of mind?”

That was when he noticed a small quirk that he must have picked up from Zack at some point, given how particular it was: rubbing the bridge of his nose with the very tip of his left index finger while glancing to the right. Angeal knew that gesture well from his early days as a mentor. Cloud was making up whatever he thought Genesis wanted to hear. In this case, esoteric _Loveless, Act V_ theories.

Once again he was impressed.

Genesis immediately abandoned his post. “More than one scholar has argued thusly,” he agreed, sitting back down where he’d been before, “Though most do not discard the Lover’s earthly form entirely, instead using her as a symbol for peace of mind. Meeting only when the Prisoner is freed, buoyed by relations between opposing forces, and yet so easily lost in the reality of his unfulfilled oath. I’m interested to hear why you have chosen a more radical interpretation.”

“And I’m interested to hear why you’re not helping anymore,” Zack groused, “You’re not going to learn if you don’t get your hands dirty.”

“Leave them be,” said Angeal, moving forward to take over head cook duties, “Besides, it might be interesting to listen to as we work.” He allowed himself to enjoy the look of pain that crossed Zack’s face.

Behind them, Cloud floundered. “Um. She doesn’t… really interact with anyone? Aside from the Prisoner. And she doesn’t have that much personality?” He was trying so hard. It was difficult not to when Genesis was focused like that.

“Ah, I see you favor the classic text.” If his approval was any thicker, they could’ve used it to marinate the deer. “Modern adaptations prefer to focus on the love story over the friends’ vow, thus expanding her role. I will admit it adds an interesting dimension to the Hero for him to be from the opposing nation… or would if anything was ever done with it.”

“…Yeah.”

Genesis had found a new (if reluctant) _Loveless_ buddy, Cloud was quickly finding his place in their ranks, and Zack had a chance to provide for his friends. In that moment, everyone was content in their own way. Angeal let himself relax. And smiled.

They’d come a long way in just a few short days.

* * *

 

The day after the next, Genesis, upon reflection, had no choice but to admit to himself that the cub had little to no interest in contemplating the mystery. The realization was embarrassingly belated, though he would never admit to it aloud—bad enough that he’d been so enamored with the idea of being able to have in-depth discussions with someone who had an appreciation for literature. Regardless, that Strife would make his true opinion known in such a manner filled his chest with sparks.

The boy-turned-man, that faux SOLDIER—his aptitude for faking enthusiasm was deeply lacking after his seeming brilliance of two nights ago. The very next day he responded but brusquely to Genesis’ attempts to engage him, growing ever more taciturn until even Fair couldn’t rouse him from his silence. He might as well have been one of the copies for all the conversation he provided.

A silence that had continued into the present, to the transparent fretting of the puppy and his mother hen. Occasionally he stopped in his tracks to press a hand to his head, and so Angeal quietly slipped him larger shares of what water they had left from the last time they were able to replenish their supply with melted snow.

Strife’s reversion to introspection yielded one benefit however: with Angeal’s focus cleanly split between his two ducklings, Genesis was able to consider his options without fear of his disapproval.

Genesis was a graceful man. Despite the gossip traded about in regards to his rivalry with Sephiroth, he was no more unaware who the more powerful warrior was—the evidence of that was carved into his body—than he was that the presence of Strife and Fair could only be detrimental to their chances of winning. He was far from incapable of admitting that an encounter with Sephiroth would end as it always did: the bodies of the defeated lying at Sephiroth’s feet. Fair on his own could potentially put the odds in their favor but Strife would no doubt prove a distraction in his weakness.

How, then, might they finish what was started in Nibelheim?

A smirk crawled its way across his face, tainted by the bitter irony of the only solution that his careful consideration led him to. None would be able to deny that he’d become the Hero.

It was then that Strife, without warning, changed direction.

“Cloud? Hey, wait, Cloud?!” yelped Fair, following him around a bend before skidding to a halt, “Wh-whoa….”

“Zack?” Angeal rushed ahead to join them.

When Genesis’ more leisurely pace finally brought him to where they stood, gaping, he saw the walls of the Northern Crater looming before them. Strife, seemingly unawed, had not paused in his steps, and therefore was some distance ahead of them.

“Hey, Cloud, don’t get too far ahead! …Cloud?”

He neither turned nor acknowledged the call in any way, walking forward with an odd certainty—though appearing to move with an instinctive knowledge of his surroundings, there was no confidence in his stride, no display of awareness that anything else existed.

“Zack,” said Angeal sharply, ordering him after Strife with a jerk of his head.

That was all Fair needed to hear to begin running forward, yelling, “Cloud, what’s up with you?!”

All around them, the copies, never before having shown cognizance of their pursuers, snapped to attention. As one, they converged upon Fair just in time to stop him from grasping Strife’s shoulder.

“Zack!”

By the time Angeal’s weapon had sprung into being, he had already struck down several of their guides with his bare fists, the strength of an enraged SOLDIER 1st Class audibly cracking their skulls. His buster sword smashed through the wings that, even after their hosts had perished, struggled to hinder him. It gave Fair the opportunity he needed to summon his own weapon and carve crimson trails through their enemies.

Genesis, rather than join the carnage ahead of him, pivoted on his heel, pouring energy into his materia as he turned. The ensuing explosion flung the remaining wretches backwards.

Those that were unfortunate enough to crash into the surrounding cliffs and rocky landscape were left a jumble of broken limbs, run through with their own bones. Others writhed in the snow, screaming in an inhuman voice that made Genesis want to slaughter _worship_ rend _obey_.

Genesis recovered in time from the unholy sound to evade the strike of an incoming copy, using the momentum from his movement to call forth the Rapier and cut clean through the wings guiding it. He watched briefly with satisfaction as it crumpled.

The next fell into a pile of its viscera, the one after that seared ear to hip by a magic-enhanced stroke. The few still capable of movement rushed him together, only to be cleaved in two by the synchronized swings of twin buster swords. He skewered the final monstrosity through its ribs with enough force to rip through its wings, scattering dark, grisly feathers at his feet.

He sneered at the repulsive facsimile of his own appendage, bringing it out as he offered an arm to Fair. On his other side, Angeal did the same.

“My friend, do you fly away now?

To a world that abhors you and I?

All that awaits you is a somber morrow

No matter where the winds may blow.”

“It’s _Cloud_ ,” he snapped, though he still accepted their offer, “Even if he’s being controlled right now, he’s still there and we need to save him! Tomorrow doesn’t have to be sad!”

“As naïve as ever,” Genesis scoffed. Together with Angeal he rose into the heavens and lowered them into hell, shaking from the effort of carrying the compressed nervous energy that was Fair. It called to mind Strife’s earlier comments on the place of the Lover.

 _A place or a state of mind, to be given up when the call to war is sounded,_ he mused, eyeing the desperation woven in furrows across Fair’s face, _Yes, perhaps there is merit in your interpretation, cub. Fair certainly fits the qualifications._

Angeal the Wanderer, lost without his honor.

Zack the Prisoner, freed from Hojo’s grip.

Cloud the Lover, the ephemeral foreign presence.

Genesis the Hero, fulfiller of those selfsame duties.

Chief among them was the figure watching them from the deepest level as they descended, eyes slitted like the monster he’d become. Strife swayed on his feet a short distance away from Sephiroth, though only Fair was willing to discard caution for his sake, dashing forward as soon as his feet touched the ground.

“Cloud! Cloud, are you okay?”

Again, Angeal was distracted. Again, he used it to his advantage.

“Genesis? What are you… no!”

It was a simple matter to drive his fist into Angeal’s solar plexus—notorious for preferring the supposedly more elegant forms of combat of swordplay and magic, the strike almost always guaranteed that his opponents would be caught be surprise.

“Angeal!”

Genesis ignored Fair’s raw scream, breathing deep to prepare himself for what was to come.

_I am ready to become the Hero._

Sephiroth gazed upon his outstretched hand and laughed, low and silky and unlike anything he’d ever heard the man sound like. “A dance? Interesting,” he purred, “What brought this on, Andesine?” Every syllable rolled out of his mouth like stream-smoothed pebbles, plinking against Genesis’ resolve despite himself.

“Even if the morrow is barren of promises,

Nothing shall forestall my return.

To become the dew that quenches the land,

To spare the sands, the seas, the skies—

I offer thee this silent sacrifice.”

Hearing the words he himself had penned emboldened him and strode one unnervingly loud step at a time to meet his destiny, drawing his hand back. When he reached his old friend, Genesis knelt as if proposing, raising his arm up to ear level and lowering it towards Sephiroth in invitation.

“Genesis, are you—are you betraying us?!”

Sephiroth’s smile spoke of cruelty, pleasure.

“Pride is lost,” Genesis whispered as his hand was taken.

“Genesis!”

He was drawn into a spin with unnecessary force, Sephiroth using his superior strength to purposefully make the dance as painful as possible while still qualifying as a dance. He shifted from one form to the next without warning, his movements so vicious as to nearly dislocate Genesis’ arms.

Every time Genesis thought they would fuse at last, he was pushed back. Lunge. Reverse pivot. Promenade. His eyes prickled as he was dragged through a chasse that they had spent a week practicing all those years ago, both too perfectionistic to accept anything less than the smoothest footwork.

That the dance could have—should have—ended long ago made his stomach curl in humiliation. It was only when Fair, livid and confused, managed to pull himself away from Angeal and Strife that Sephiroth finally, _finally_ drew Genesis into himself.

 _At long last, I have bested you, Hero,_ he crowed as they became one, basking in vindication, _This story has no more need of you._ Pure power, all his, coursed through his new body, longing to subjugate everything in his path. It was intoxicating, a siren’s call he for once has no interest in resisting.

_I know what you really are, Sephiroth. For all that you make steel sing, that you rend even the strongest foes with but the slightest effort, your will is weak. A man without passion cannot defeat me in a battle of the heart and mind._

All too soon, however, his triumph gave way to horror.

Though they had formed Tiger’s Eye, he was himself. Genesis. Andesine. And he could do nothing.

Not move.

Not speak.

Not dominate.

Their shared headspace resonated with Sephiroth’s mocking laughter.

He had doomed them all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was not supposed to be this long. Or rather, it was supposed to be this long due to the Gang vs Sephiroth. Alas, I misremembered the distance between Bone Village and the Northern Crater when I wrote up my summary, so, there you go. More travelling. That plus the tag team of the voices I use for Angeal and Cloud's POV's made writing this drag and drag. Still, I'm satisfied with what was accomplished.
> 
> Hope you all enjoyed the chapter! From this point on, the stakes are much, much higher.


	10. Tango

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angeal = Chiastolite  
> Cloud = Chrysoprase  
> Genesis = Andesine  
> Zack = Angel Aura
> 
> Fusions so far:
> 
> Genesis + Zack = Fire Opal  
> Angeal + Cloud = Sodalite  
> Angeal + Genesis = Serpentine  
> Genesis + Sephiroth = Tiger's Eye

Behind him, Zack heard Angeal gasp “Tiger’s Eye!”

As much as he wanted to, he couldn’t turn around to check up on his mentor—not when he had a notoriously unstable fusion in front of him.

Tiger’s Eye was tall, slender, and pale, with long red hair that almost reached his ankles. His narrow face had high, defined cheekbones and a long nose, two sets of slanted eyes on either side of it. Genesis’ missing eye had its place directly to the left of the nose. He noticed that the pupils of all the eyes were slitted like a cat.

 _Well, he_ is _called Tiger’s Eye,_ Zack reasoned, trying to laugh off his fear. Something hard to do when his opponent was over twice his height, had even larger black wings, and held a sword in all four of his arms.

“Genesis?” he called, “Are you… what’s going on?”

Zack hadn’t thought anyone could open their mouth elegantly but Tiger’s Eye proved him wrong. He waited, hoping Genesis’ influence would be enough to balance out Sephiroth’s insanity or even heal him like Angeal had done for Cloud.

Tiger’s Eye laughed. And laughed. And laughed.

He was so unnerved that he jumped when he Angeal’s hand landed on his shoulder.

“It’s useless trying to reason with them,” he rasped, “Tiger’s Eye is… he brings out the worst in both of them. Shinra’s hosted more than one recruitment drive because some bigwig it would be a good idea to have them fuse on the frontlines.”

It only proved his point when he easily—casually, even—ducked under Tiger’s Eye’s sudden, sword-first rush, flipping him over his hip and away with his SOLDIER strength.

“Zack, we’re not going to get anywhere fighting on our own.”

Zack peeked over his should at Cloud. He was laying exactly where he’d dragged him after Angeal went down. Turning back, he nodded to Angeal.

It was different from Genesis.

In unison, without discussing it—without it even crossing his mind that there was something _to_ discuss—he and Angeal called their swords. The blades tapped lightly against each other before they moved through their well-practiced forms. It was natural. So natural that before he knew it, their arms were locked and Angeal’s neck was shining through his shirt.

* * *

 

Without opening his eyes, Specularite knocked back the strike aimed at his heart.

_Clang!_

_Clatterclatterclatter._

He grinned.

When he finally looked, Tiger’s Eye had already summoned new weapons. And boy, was _that_ a nasty glare.

Specularite planted his sword in the ground at an angle (mostly because it was way too big to do so upright) and leaned against it. “Yo, Tiger! Sure you want to use those toothpicks? I wouldn’t want this to end because your swords keep breaking.”

“CHILD,” Tiger sneered, brandishing his rapiers. They were longer and thicker than most but still. Toothpicks.

“I know, I know, and it’s mean to pick on you, but right now you’re not leaving me much choice,” he laughed, giving a jaunty wave, “Just de-fuse already, would you?”

_Whoosh!_

Tiger was fast but he didn’t really do anything with it. Instead of trying to outmaneuver him, he shot forward at top speed. One step and Specularite was in the clear.

By the time his enemy had recovered, it was too late—his own sword swung down in time to shatter the rapiers yet again, imbedding in the rock below from the sheer power behind it. He reveled in the resulting tremor.

Tiger’s Eye’s tiger eyes narrowed.

“TRAITOR.”

Guffawing, Specularite took three steps back—the minimum distance to be able to draw his sword out of the ground and poise it sword horizontally at the other’s throat. He almost squealed with glee at just how _big_ it was. And he was lifting it without breaking a sweat! …Though he did have to use all four hands.

“WHY?”

“Huh?”

“OPPOSE.”

“Oh, come on, like you can’t guess!” He let go of the hilt with his left hands so that he’d have fingers to waggle. “You’re being a brat. Also, you killed a lot of people. Can’t forget that.” He took a breath to go on, only to realize—

_FZZZZZZ-WHOOSH!_

—it was a dirty trick.

An incredibly powerful blast of fire threw Specularite across the cavern. He felt his clothing and skin tear off as he skidding across the uneven floor, the flames taking care of the rest. He didn’t stop until his head smashed into a stalagmite. The only reason he didn’t split back into Angel Aura and Chiastolite was because his sword had taken the brunt of the attack.

“You… jerk…,” he groaned.

_SHING-CLINK._

Tiger’s Eye was almost too fast to dodge.

_KSSSSSS~_

Scratch that. He was almost too fast to _see_.

Specularite hissed in pain as he burned.

“CALLOW.”

He managed to struggle to his feet but was immediately knocked back down by yet another burst. It felt as if he didn’t have any skin left.

“CLUMSY.”

Creating a new weapon, he swung—

“Aaaaaaaaaagh!” he howled, staring in horror at what remained of his hands after his sword exploded.

“CARELESS.”

Trying to rush the oversized kitten, Specularite ran headlong into a wall of flames that sprung up at Tiger’s command.

Pain.

The scent of his own body cooking.

 _The people of Nibelheim… they… just like this… no…,_ moaned Angel Aura.

“DIE.”

_BANG!_

Without realizing, he’d fallen to his feet and his eyes had closed. They shot open.

Chry.

It was Chrysoprase.

It was almost funny to see tiny little Chry, not grown into his older body yet, stubbornly glaring up at a fusion the height of two barns.

…No, it wasn’t funny at all.

“Chry, get out of here!”

The sweet, dear jewel blinked at him. He didn’t seem fully aware of his surroundings.

“PUPPET.” Tiger’s Eye was tensing to move.

Specularite moved faster.

In an instant, he’d dashed forward, faster than Tiger. He wrapped himself around Chry in time to fling them both out of the path of a series of deadly slashes. Moving faster than he’d thought possible, he ran up the wall to deposit his charge on the nearest ledge.

“What about you?!”

From the look in his eyes, Specularite could tell that Tiger was catching up. He gently ruffled Chry’s hair (as best as he could with his least stumpy hand) and said, “Don’t cry, Chry. Leave this bully to me!”

“LIAR.”

_VROO—SHWIING!_

Tiger’s Eye catapulted himself across the room with a leap and a flap. Upwards.

To Chry.

Who tried to shoot his attacker down. Failing that, he twisted his body into a flip, straight off the ledge. He spun as he fell, looking almost like a ballet dancer.

 _TING!—_ went his brain bulb.

“Chry!” he yelled, spreading his arms, “You’ll be safe with me!” He caught him and swung him around three times, gripping him safe and close.

* * *

 

“I AM RHODONITE!”

Having spoken, Rhodonite summoned Rhodonite’s weapon: a mighty hand-held cannon with a bust sword as a bayonet. Rhodonite launched a cannonball directly at Tiger’s Eye’s incoming face.

He managed to dodge with a flare of his wings.

“No matter. Rhodonite will still defeat you!” declared Rhodonite, raising arms to salute with the bulky piece.

Tiger’s Eye delicately landed, turned with a raised eyebrow. “CADET.”

“There is no cadet,” Rhodonite informed him gravely, “There is only Rhodonite.” With a great roar, the cannon fired again. “And Rhodonite is strong!”

“DELUSIONAL,” retorted the enemy jewel. He imbued his thin blades with his most powerful spells yet, each taking on a different element. Firaga, thundaga, blizzaga, and holy. “SUBMIT.”

Rhodonite felt the attempt the attempt to use Rhodonite’s Jenova cells against Rhodonite—oh, did Rhodonite ever!—but did not succumb.

Realizing he’d failed, Tiger’s Eye snarled and spiraled into the air until he’d cleared the summit. Then he evened out into a dive. They swords made streaks of color in the air. One by one, they were thrust towards Rhodonite, and one by one, Rhodonite let go of the cannon, a hand at a time, to catch them all.

Upper left.

Lower right.

Upper right.

Lower left.

“PAIN,” said Tiger’s Eye smugly, putting more weight behind them. They grated against Rhodonite’s finger bones.

But Rhodonite would not falter. “Pain,” Rhodonite agreed, “but also victory!” Rhodonite’s middle set of arms struggled to lift Rhodonite’s cannon. Rhodonite certainly wouldn’t be able to fire—regardless of recoil, it would take at least three arms to hold it steady and pull the trigger.

But Rhodonite didn’t need to pull the trigger.

With great effort, the bayonet slid into Tiger’s Eye’s belly.

“IMPOSSIBLE.”

“The jewel who slew Moonstone is a part of Rhodonite. It was inevitable.”

Tiger’s Eye was no more. Duty done, Rhodonite bowed out as well.

* * *

 

Cloud gasped for air on his hands and knees. Behind him, Zack was whooping and generally making excited noise, Angeal looking for Genesis. Or rather, Andesine. No one was paying attention to him.

He shakily lowered his torso to rest on his left arm. Unclenched his right hand. Moonstone. That was what Rhodonite called Sephiroth. All he had to do was smash it. The memories were blurred but he knew he had every reason to. Nibelheim. His mother. And the recent mind control. Or whatever it was.

“Cloud, you doing okay?” Zack. Zack wouldn’t approve.

“Y-yeah,” he lied, slipping the moonstone into his scarf, “Just catching my breath.” When he stood up, he saw Zack beaming proudly at him. His conscience twinged. Especially when his friend came in for a hug.

“I told you, didn’t I?! If it weren’t for you, Angeal and I would’ve been toast!”

_If it weren’t for me, Sephiroth would’ve been asleep when you arrived._

“Zack is right—your help was invaluable.”

_Invaluably terrible._

“Hey, is that Genesis? He’s not going to take four years to come back, is he?”

“Don’t worry, Zack. I was… being foolish. Genesis takes the longest to reform, but he’s never taken more than a week.”

“A week?! Well, at least he won’t fuse with Sephiroth again. Speaking of which….”

A voice sounding like his mother’s scolded him.

_But you’re dead now._

“I saw it fall—Sephiroth’s jewel,” said Cloud, pointing towards a crack in the ground at random. Luckily, it was too deep to see far into it.

Angeal frowned. “He could have shattered. Or he could be stuck with no way to free himself.”

“So, should we camp out here?” Zack automatically looked to Angeal, remembered that Cloud was there, and silently begged for his approval.

He shrugged. He only needed a few minutes alone to destroy Sephiroth for good. They’d get bored of waiting for him to reform sooner or later. Sooner, if the Turks’ investigation of the Sephiroth sightings caught up to them.

“I’ve no objections,” said Angeal. He looked at the stone in his hand and touched the one at his throat.

“So… should we make camp?” Zack was staring at both of them strangely.

Cloud shrugged again, fidgeting. He was starting to feel closed in. And he knew Zack knew it.

“Hey, Angeal? Mind setting things up?” called Zack, not looking away from Cloud. When he got Angeal’s knowing acceptance, he power-walked over to Cloud, leading him carefully away.

_Why are you doing this? Don’t you know I…._

They walked quite a distance off. The ‘campsite’ disappeared. Without his improved sense, he wouldn’t have been able to see anything. Finally, they entered a large, open cavern. The handful of monsters present, sensing the greater predators, made themselves scarce. Zack found a nook formed of a pair of stalagmites near the edge of the ‘room’.

Cloud expected to be confronted—had Zack heard an increase of his heartbeat when he lied? Did catch him hide the moonstone? _Did he know?_ —but Zack very gently sat down between them, drawing Cloud down with him. Holding him. Humming, then singing, with none of the purposeful tunelessness he usually did. It was… nice. He obviously wasn’t trained but there was a hominess to his voice. Or maybe it was the silly children’s song.

“Gon’ gaga for Gongaga,

It’s a Kimara saga,

But be prepared to cast an –aga if you don’t wanna be stung!”

Cloud couldn’t help but laugh softly. He wondered if that was the actual tune or if Zack was really, really out of practice.

“Flower Prong gets pretty strong,

So you gotta hit the gong,

It helps to have ‘suna along, or you’re in deep dung!”

“Is this how you passed your monster identification exams back in basic?” he teased. Zack tripped up, snorting, and flicked his arm in punishment.

“Grand Horn likes to… uh….

Gagighandi is a fuss,

Beating it takes a Soft touch,

But it doesn’t hurt too much, at least not… something, something, among!”

Zack stopped as soon as Cloud had relaxed more. Just stroked his arm and held him. His guilt at what he was hiding made it hard to relax, but maybe… maybe he could forget. Just for a bit. Just forget.

Zack’s arms were so warm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to update MUCH sooner but senior hell became family hell became vacation hell =_______= At least me and school are never, ever getting back together.
> 
> I'm not committing to any sort of update schedule yet, since I'm gonna be job hunting, (hopefully) working, and spending most of my writing time on my own original stuff, but I do wanna try to not skip half a year next time ^^; Still, a lot of personal things that were holding me back are no longer in the equation, so I should be able to settle into some semblance of a routine.
> 
> See you all next update!


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